Kingdom Hearts: Forgotten Worlds
by NerdWithAKeyboard
Summary: Sora and Kairi are tasked with visiting new worlds to protect them from the ever-expanding Heartless, working with Donald and Goofy to hone their abilities as Keyblade wielders. At the same time, Yen Sid and King Mickey discover that an ancient evil long thought defeated has returned, and threatens to plunge all worlds into Darkness.
1. Introduction

Sora was bored.

His Kingdom Key struck the black mass of the Shadow Heartless, knocking it swiftly to the ground and causing it to die in a puff of smoke that released the entrapped Heart. It was nothing he had not seen a thousand times before.

A Soldier Heartless sprinted towards him, flailing its limp arms wildly as its crude armor rattled around its black body. It raised a clawed hand and slashed at him, but Sora simply lifted his Keyblade into the path of the attack and blocked it, staggering the Heartless.

Yen Sid's Mysterious Tower rarely fell victim to Heartless and Nobody infestations, but every once and a while, like now, it did. Though it was nothing that Sora could not handle. However, that was exactly the issue.

Ever since Riku passed the Mark of Mastery exam, Yen Sid had been sending him off on adventures and quests to preserve the light, usually with Lea in tow to train alongside him. While Sora admitted that they were probably the best choice for the types of missions Yen Sid had for them, Sora could not help but feel left out. All he seemed to do every day was travel between the Mysterious Tower, Hollow Bastion, Disney Castle, and Twilight Town protecting them from Heartless and Nobodies. After a while, that started to get dull; as much as he hated to admit it, he yearned for a challenge.

The one major upside is that he was usually shadowed by Kairi, who was also training to become a Keyblade Master. Sora had to enjoy himself when she was around; it was just his nature to be happy whenever she was near. However, today she was studying books up in the Tower, leaving him alone to do the fighting. It was a touch frustrating, to say the least.

Sora sighed slightly as he struck down the Heartless. He knew he was getting practice, but these same old enemies and same old worlds were not helping him hone his skills, just boring him out of his skull. He glanced around for the next Heartless to pop up, but none did. He must have gotten them all.

Sora stood straight and let his Keyblade vanish until it was needed again. He was barely even out of breath.

* * *

From above, the watchful eyes of Yen Sid looked down on Sora.

"I believe there is something on young Sora's mind," he said to his companion and friend beside him.

His Majesty glanced up at the wizard. "What? It's not... Xehanort, is it?" he asked worriedly in his high-pitched, but regal voice.

Yen Sid shook his head slowly. "I believe he thinks that he is not honing his abilities. He is afraid that the tedium of the same few worlds and the same few foes is making him weaker and more unprepared for the future. I believe, simply put, he is bored."

King Mickey took a moment to consider it. "I suppose he would be," he said, "I know I would be. Sora really likes goin' on adventures."

The wizard nodded. "Indeed. And that opportunity may come to him." Yen Sid turned and walked over to his desk.

King Mickey's eyes followed his mentor. "Whadda you mean?" he asked. "Do Riku and Lea need help? Did something happen?"

Yen Sid sat down. "No. Their mission into investigating the paths to the Realm of Darkness has not been hindered," he said. "But upon looking to the stars, I have noticed that worlds that were previously untouched by the forces of Darkness have now been attacked. The Heartless especially are spreading their reach."

King Mickey turned to Yen Sid. "The Heartless are growin' stronger? Why now?"

Yen Sid closed his eyes and leaned down. "I am unsure. It is as if some dark power has drawn them from sleeping and out onto new worlds." He opened his eyes. "But that is a matter for you and I to figure out. All Sora need do is travel to these worlds and fight back the forces of Darkness and seal their Keyholes, as he has done many times before. Not only will he be saving these worlds, but he will relieve some of his tension by visiting new places and undoubtedly be facing new foes." The wizard smiled slightly. "He will get better practice there than he will here. And if he brings young Kairi along, they are sure to make a splendid team."

King Mickey walked over to Yen Sid's side and placed a gloved hand on the desk. "That sounds about right. But Kairi is still in her early learning, and doesn't have the experience Sora has. As much as I trust Sora, do you think it would be best if I send Donald and Goofy with them? If the Heartless are growing stronger, then they'll need all the help they can get. And if whatever is drawing the Heartless there proves to be more dangerous than we expected, at least they'll have backup."

Yen Sid nodded. "Excellent idea. Summon them immediately."

King Mickey nodded. "When will you be sending them out?"

"Right away," Yen Sid replied.

* * *

Sora marched slowly up the winding staircase to the Tower's top. He received word that Master Yen Sid wanted a word with Kairi and him. As much as he tried to figure it out, he had no idea what Yen Sid would want to see him about. He hoped he was not in trouble.

Sora reached the wooden door and gently placed his hand on it, pushing it open with a quiet squeaking of the hinges. Yen Sid was seated at his desk, his blue robes wrapped around him and his mysterious cap standing tall upon his head. King Mickey stood next to the desk, his face chipper and relaxed. On the left side of the room, a few feet away from King Mickey, were a familiar duo: the short Donald Duck in a twisted wizard's outfit complete with hat, and the tall, happily grinning Goofy suited in loose armor. They glanced over at Sorra as he walked in and smiled widely. They waved, and Sora happily waved back at his good friends. Standing at attention in front of Yen Sid's desk already was Kairi, her beautiful long red hair draped over her shoulders, dressed in a pink strapless mini-dress with a black hood and a white halter top underneath. She turned her head and grinned at Sora, and Sora suddenly forgot why he was there. He kept walking forward, not to come to Yen Sid, but to be closer to Kairi. He kept his eyes fixed on her, grinning back until he almost bumped into the desk and snapped back to reality. He stood at attention as the two teens faced Master Yen Sid.

Although the display had not gone unnoticed by the old master, Yen Sid chose to dismiss it. "Sora. Kairi. I summoned you here because I have a mission for the two of you."

Sora mentally breathed a sigh of relief. Finally!

Yen Sid continued. "For whatever reason, the Heartless have spread their influence to worlds previously unburdened by them." He looked at Sora. "I am tasking you with traveling to these distant worlds and sealing their Keyholes so the Heartless cannot take their Hearts." Sora nodded slightly. He could do that. He had done it before.

Yen Sid turned to look at Kairi. "Kairi, I would like you to follow Sora to these worlds and help him battle these dark forces. Practice, and work together to hone your abilities and discover new powers." He then turned to face both of them. "As these worlds are new to you, Mickey and I will be having Donald and Goofy accompany you. We have already taken the liberty of ensuring the paths between these worlds are open, and have informed you ship's engineers Chip and Dale of the number and locations of the worlds we need you to protect." He sat back in his chair. "Are you up for this mission?"

Both Sora and Kairi clicked their heels together. "Yes, Master!" they said in unison.

"Very well," Yen Sid said, smiling ever so slightly. "Good luck to you all."

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all bowed, then marched out of the room. Donald was the last to exit, shutting the door behind them.

Mickey glanced over to Yen Sid. "We're not going to tell them about whatever might be drawing the Heartless there?"

Yen Sid sighed. "Not now. But if anything happens, I've already instructed Chip and Dale to pull everyone out and contact us." He turned in his chair to glance out the window at the starry sky. "It may be nothing at all."

However, he then asked himself under his breath, "What am I not seeing?"

* * *

Sora whooped.

"C'mere, guys, don't be strangers!" he said excitedly.

He got a little more than he asked for. Donald and Goofy practically tackled him, but he kept his balance and grabbed his friends in a huge bear hug. All of them laughed, including Kairi, who was giggling madly at the sight.

"So," Goofy said, breaking off the embrace. "How's the training going?"

Sora shrugged. "Fine, I guess. But I've been waiting for a new mission for forever. These same old places have gotten boring. And now I'm gonna see worlds I've never seen before!"

"Just remember," the shrill voice of Donald said, "you've got a mission. You're not there to sightsee."

"Well, maybe a little sightseeing..." Sora joked. He turned to Kairi. "You ready?"

Kairi giggled and nodded. "Sure am. I've been getting a little antsy too." She put her arms behind her back and smiled with her eyes closed, in a way that made Sora go nuts.

"So," Sora said to Donald and Goofy. "do we need to go back to Disney Castle for takeoff?"

"No need," Goofy replied. "The Gummi Ship's already parked outside."

"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sorta said enthusiastically. "Race you!" he yelled as he ran towards the ship, with Donald, Goofy, and Kairi close behind.


	2. Quiet Town

Sora hopped into the pilot's seat of the Gummi Ship, eagerly gripping the controls. Donald and Goofy had gone to change into more casual attire, and Kairi sat in one of the spare seats towards the rear.

As Sora studied the controls in front of him, the screen on his display suddenly burst to life with a rush of static. When the static cleared, Sora saw two familiar friendly faces greeting him.

"Hiya, Sora!" one said in their high-pitched voice.

"How's it goin', Sora?" the other replied in their slightly deeper voice.

"Chip! Dale!" Sora exclaimed. "Master Yen Sid said you'd be guiding us."

"Sure are!" Dale replied, hopping with excitement. "The trip will be a little longer because of how far away the worlds are, but once you get there, you should be hopping from world to world in no time!"

"The first world is a Quiet Town," Chip added. "The Heartless activity is lesser there, so it should be good place to start off."

Sora nodded. "Sounds great!"

He turned in his chair to see if Donald and Goofy had arrived yet. Instead he saw Kairi, sitting pigeon-toed in the large seat, with her Keyblade, Destiny's Embrace, on her lap. Her face had a somber expression.

Sora immediately decided o go talk to her. He stood up from the chair and walked over to Kairi, who did not even notice him until he placed a hand on her shoulder, making her jump slightly. Sora bent down to her level.

"Hey," he said calmly. "Are you okay?"

Kairi smiled. "Yep!" She replied.

As much as Sora wanted to believe her, he knew there was something wrong. "Are you sure? You seem a little down. And you haven't said much."

Kairi's smile fell, and she looked down at her Keyblade. She sighed. "It's just… I feel like a burden. Everyone has already gone on huge adventures. You've taken down threats I could never have… the Council of Villains, the Heartless, Organization XIII… I just feel like I'm slowing you down."

Sora got on his knees and placed his other hand on Kairi's other shoulder. "You're not a burden," he assured. "You're still learning. We all have to start somewhere."

Kairi sighed again. "I don't know. You've had to save me so many times. I'm just the damsel in distress. What have I done to deserve this power?" She ran her hand over Destiny's Embrace. "I haven't used this tool to its full potential yet. I can't seal the Hearts of worlds like you can. I've just hit a few monsters with my Keyblade. You've saved worlds, Sora." She paused. "How am I worthy of this weapon?"

Sora smiled. "Hey, you're a lot more worthy than any of us, and you're a lot better than I was when I started." Then he got an idea. "Hey, when we're out in these new worlds, I'll let you seal one of the Hearts, okay? It'll get you started."  
Kairi looked up at Sora. "Really? Don't I need to learn how to do that first?"

Sora shook his head. "Nope. It comes naturally. When the time is right, you'll feel it. And you'll know exactly what to do." He smiled. "So when we're out, you tell me when you get that feeling, and I'll let you take care of it."

Kairi smiled. "Thank you, Sora."

The two were lost for a moment as they stared into the other's eyes.

"Ready to go?" Donald suddenly quacked, interrupting them and bringing them back to reality.

Sora stood up. "Yep, sure thing!" Donald and Goofy wandered to their co-pilot seats.

"Prepare for takeoff!" Goofy called.

Sora hopped back in the pilot seat and glanced down at the screen, giving a thumbs-up to his friends on the other end. Chip and Dale saluted, and Sora hit the thrust.

The Gummi Ship lurched forward, then rose from the ground. Sora rotated the controls until the ship was pointed in the direction of their destination, then hit the thrust. The Gummi Ship blasted off in a blur of color and the roar of engines.

* * *

Despite Chip and Dale being right about the journey taking longer, Sora did not mind at all. It was so much better than fighting Nobodies in Twilight Town for the millionth time. He glanced around to see if his friends were having as much fun as he was. Donald was staring intently at the controls but otherwise seemed content, Goofy was gazing out at the passing starts, and Kairi was still seated with Destiny' Embrace on her lap, but with a much happier and more confident look on her face. Sora was glad he could cheer her up.

"Approaching the first world!" Donald yelled to the other crew. Sora turned his eyes forward to see the world approaching. Even from a distance, he could tell that it was a small world. It resembled a medieval town, with groups of neighborhoods, a town center, and several larger, more elegant-looking structures.

"Prepare for landing!" Goofy called. Sora pointed the controls down and dipped quickly towards the world.

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy walked along the cobble streets of the Quiet Town. Despite the name, the town was quite noisy with friendly greetings and conversations from passersby, the rambunctious sound of livestock, and the laughing of playing children. It was a soothing kind of noisy, as if the whole world were joined in communion.

As Sora and his friends walked through the busy streets, he suddenly overheard the end of a conversation nearby.

"Do be careful," a woman's voice said. "Those monsters can be dangerous!"

Sora turned to see a middle-aged woman with a short white bonnet and apron talking to a much larger woman. The other woman had long, wavy, rose-colored hair and a pretty complexion. She wore a small white vest with a brown belt cinched just below her bosom, dark shorts, and tall pink-and-brown boots. However, what caught Sora's attention was a large weapon sheathed on one of her belts.

"I'll be fine," the tall woman said in a tough, no-nonsense voice. She turned on her heels and began marching through the crowds and past Sora and the others.

Sora looked at his friends. "That woman was talking to that other one about monsters. Those could be the Heartless. Come on, maybe she knows where we can find them." Kairi, Donald, and Goofy nodded in approval.

Sora started after the woman. Her long strides coupled with the busy streets made catching up to her difficult. Sora picked up his pace to try and reach her, pushing and squirming through the crowds. He watched the woman push her way through the people and begin walking on a small bridge with significantly less foot traffic..

Sora had to quicken to a jog just to catch up to her. He made it past the swarms, and soon was on the bridge. He hurried to reach the woman.

"Excuse me?" Sora asked when he thought he was close enough.

The woman did not so much as react. Sora figured she must not have heard him.

"Excuse me?" he said louder, almost directly next to her.

Suddenly, the woman stopped and whirled around, yanking her weapon from its sheath, which unfolded to reveal a dark, jagged sword. She leaned down slightly and thrust the sword forward, stopping it just before the point reached Sora's neck. Instinctively, Sora activated Kingdom Key.

"What do you want from me?" she barked, a frustrated expression on her face.

"Sora!" a voice called. Sora glanced over to see Kairi, Donald, and Goofy rush up. Donald held his staff in his wing, and Goofy had hie shield raised. Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace and positioned herself for battle.

The woman eyed them over briefly, then scoffed. She pulled the blade back from Sora's neck, folding it back up and returning it to its sheath. "You're Keyblade wielders," she huffed.

Sora nodded as his Keyblade dematerialized. Donald and Goofy lowered their weapons. Kairi stood down as well, but did not deactivate her Keyblade.

"My name's Sora," Sora said, placing a hand on his chest. "These are my friends Kairi, Donald and Goofy. We heard you talking about monsters. We'd like to know what they're like."

The woman scoffed again and folded her arms over her chest. "Yeah?" she asked in a condescending tone. "Why?"

Sora was beginning to get irritated. "They might be Heartless. If they are, then they're what we came to fight."

"Shadows," the woman said. "Dark creatures, emerging from the ground and air. Sharp claws. Gnashing teeth. Too much for kids."

Sora nodded. "Sounds like the Heartless. They fear our Keyblades. We can come help you if you're fighting them too."

"No," the woman said, turning around and beginning to walk away. Sora had to hurry to keep up with her.

"Hold on!" Kairi said, jogging up beside Sora, Keyblade now deactivated. "I think we got off on the wrong foot here. What's your name?" Kairi asked, smiling with the most warmth she could muster for such a rude individual.

"None of your business," the woman snapped, not even looking down at them.

Sora was about to speak up again when Kairi stopped him. "Forget it, Sora. Let's just leave her alone."

"Listen to your friend," the woman remarked before hurrying off. She got off the bridge and onto a dirt path, which wound through a field before disappearing into woods. Sora and Kairi waited until she was out of rage to speak.

"How rude!" Donald quacked, clearly annoyed. He looked ready to fight.

"I'll say," Sora replied. "If she knows who we are, why wouldn't she want us to come along?"

"Well, if she needs us, she'll know where to find us," Kairi said. Everyone nodded in approval.

"So…" Sora said, putting his arms behind his head, "what now?"

Goofy placed a gloved hand on his chin. "Well, if that woman is goin' to fight the Heartless, then I guess we just go wherever she's going. We're bound to stumble upon Heartless if we keep wanderin' about. We'll just try not to meet up with her again."

Sora, Kairi, and Donald nodded in agreement, then all began walking quietly off the bridge, down the dirt path, and into the woods.

The woods were dense and thick with trees, whose massive green canopies covered the sun and swayed in the gentle breeze. Thin beams of warm sunlight crept through the leaves. Sora admitted he could get used get used to a place like this.

Suddenly, without warning, the shadows on the ground began to rise. Sora yelped and jumped back, activating his Keyblade. Kairi did the same, and Donald and Goofy pulled out their respective weapons. The shadows rose into five twitching, wild Shadow Heartless. Above them, two dark orbs of black and purple emerged from thin air, growing in size until they were large, spherical Darkball Heartless. They gnashed their teeth as the hovered closer.

Kairi was the first to react. She lunged forward with the Keyblade raised just over her head, and slammed the weapon into one of the Darkball's faces. The Heartless was knocked back, and Kairi took the window of opportunity to adjust herself and stab Destiny's embrace into an approaching Shadow.

Sora joined, leaping up into the air and bringing his Keyblade down on the other Darkball, knocking it back in a similar fashion. However, unlike Kairi, he instead focused the enemy and charged forward, leaping into the air and twirling, striking the airborne monster several times with his rotating Keyblade.

One of the Shadows advanced on Goofy, slashing with its claws. Goofy blocked the attack with his shield, then proceeded to ram the creature with it before bringing the shield's edge down on top of the Heartless cutting it down and making it vanish in a burst of smoke-like Darkness, the trapped Heart released form within.

Donald used his staff to knock back the Shadows, then raised it into the air.

"Take that!" he quacked loudly. A bolt of lightning arced down as he cast a Thunder spell. The bolt struck a Shadow and smote it.

Sora advanced on the Darkball, slashing through it and defeating it. He turned his attention to a nearby Shadow and lowered his Keyblade to the ground before slashing it back up again, knocking the Heartless into the air here it then received the brunt of Sora's powerful blows, soo dying.

Kairi slashed through the Shadow, only to see the last Darkball charging towards her, chomping wildly. Kairi held her Keyblade in front of her just before the monster made contact, blocking the sharp teeth from biting into her. The Darkball staggered, and Kairi took the opportunity to stab at the creature directly between its eyes, killing it.

Donald cast a Blizzard spell at the last Shadow, staggering it and allowing Goofy to finish it off with his shield. The woods went silent again, save for the rustling of leaves in the breeze.

"Good job, guys," Sora said. "Let's press on."

They continued walking down the path, the woods unchanging around them. Ahead was a small curve in the path. As the group approached, a single Soldier Heartless suddenly appeared and charged. It caught Sora a bit off guard, knocking into him and pushing him back.

"Sora!" Kairi shouted, pulling out Destiny's Embrace and slashing at the Heartless. The blow knocked the Soldier down onto its back, leaving it a pile of crumbled armor. Kairi then rushed the fallen Heartless and lifted her Keyblade.

"Fire!" she shouted, casting a spell that engulfed her in rings of fire. The flames struck the Heartless, destroying it. Sora, who had recovered from the attack, walked over to her.

"Thanks," he said.

Kairi smiled at him. "Don't mention it."

As they turned the curve, they came into view of a small cabin resting on the end of the path. However, it looked long deserted, with the roof caved in, the door barely on its hinges, the windows dusty and cracked, and cobwebs and dust consuming the exterior.

"Gawrsh," Goofy remarked. "I wonder who lived here."

"We should check it out," Sora said.

"But it's gross!" Donald objected.

"And may have Heartless," Kairi reminded him.

Donald sighed. "All right, all right."

Sora stepped onto the creaking porch and placed his hands on the dusty, splinter-infested door. Minding the sharp edges, he slowly pushed the door open. The door creaked and groaned as it swung, and revealed a room clouded with dust. As Sora stepped inside, he had to wave his hand in front of his face to fan away the debris in the air.

As the others filed in, Sora studied the room. It took up most of the space of the cabin, and consisted of a rusty wood-burning stove with a cobweb-covered kettle on top, an abandoned broom, a table missing a leg, and an old chair that, despite being dusty, was still in decent condition. Another door, open to a dark section of the cabin, lay on the left back wall.

Sora looked around and listened. The place was silent aside from the breeze coming through the opened door and shattered windows. The dust swirled in place and the cobwebs danced.

Suddenly, Sora heard a rustling coming from the other room. Kairi perked up her head as well, indicating that she heard it as well. Sora and Kairi looked at each other, then simultaneously activated their Keyblades. Careful to stay right next to each other, Sora and Kairi slowly made their way towards the door. Though it was ajar, it was positioned just so that neither could see into the adjourning room. As they approached, Kairi stepped on a loose board, that squeaked loudly under her weight. Both teens paused for a moment to listen, but did not hear any response. Tiptoeing now, Sora and Kairi made their way over to the door. Slowly and noiselessly, Sora reached for the handle.

Before he could grab it, the door swung open and slammed loudly. A figure burst from the room, lunging at Sora and Kairi. Both held their Keyblades firm, pointing them at the figure as it flashed a weapon in front of them.

No longer than a second passed before Sora lowered his Keyblade and groaned. Kairi held hers forward, but relaxed her stance a bit.

The rose-haired woman from earlier growled in frustration. She shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes. "I thought I told you kids to get lost," she muttered bitterly.

"So sorry to run into you again," Sora said in a tone that implied that he was sorry for them, not her.

"What are you doing here?" the woman demanded, subtly waving her blade in front of them.

"Look," Kairi said, lowering her Keyblade and stepping forward, "we're out here fighting these Heartless. If you're doing the same, you're going to run into us. That's how it works. Besides, what are you doing here?"

The woman scoffed. "I'm not just 'fighting the monsters', girl. I'm doing a little investigating."

"Investigating what?" Goofy asked, stepping forward.

The woman groaned, but decided to answer. "It's about the man who used to live here. His name was Dorgann Klauser. He used to be a member of a group called the Warriors of Dawn before he retired here."

"What happened to him?" Sora asked.

"He passed away about three years ago," the woman replied. "He had a bad illness. They buried him next to his wife."

"So what are you investigating about him?" Kairi wondered.

The woman turned around and stepped into the dark room. Sora and Kairi followed, finding themselves in a small bedroom with a decrepit old bed along one of the walls. However, in the middle of the wooden floor was a large hole that took up almost all the floor area of the room. The woman knelt down beside it, and Sora and Kairi looked down it. It was very deep, and very dark. However, just barely noticeable at the bottom of the put, was what appeared to be a steel box with shattered chains around it. It was open, and from the shape of it, resembled a metal coffin.

"What is that?" Kairi asked.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," the woman answered, still gazing down the pit. "Whatever that coffin thing is, I think it has something to do with the monsters."

"Why do you say that?" Sora asked her.

The woman sighed in frustration. "Because they first started appearing three years ago, shortly after Klauser died." She paused. "I think Klauser was trying to seal something away. And whatever it is got out, and is the reason for the Darkness here now."

Sora wore an inquisitive look on his face. He would have to remember to mention this to Chip and Dale when they were back on the Gummi Ship so they could relay it to Master Yen Sid and King Mickey.

Kairi was thinking the same. "Sora…" she said, "do you think…?" Sora nodded before she finished. He agreed. Whatever had gotten loose here was somehow affiliated with the Darkness, and could be a factor into why the Heartless were spreading.

Before Sora could ask another question, suddenly a crash came from the other room, followed by Donald quacking loudly. Sora and Kairi gripped their Keyblades and sprinted into the other room. The woman stood up and quickly followed them.

Sora and Kairi dashed into the room to see Donald and Goofy surrounded by Shadows, Darkballs, Soldiers, and Hook Bats. Goofy was fending off attacks with his shield, and Donald was doing his best to hold them back with various spells.

Sora and Kairi rushed in swinging, hitting as many Heartless away from their friends as they could. There were a lot more than earlier, and Sora had to watch his back to make sure one did not attack from behind while he was taking on one of them. He slashed and swung at a Soldier, knocking it around and causing the old wood below its armored feet to creak. Kairi fought back a Darkball and a couple Shadows, and Donald and Goofy took on several Hook Bats and another Darkball.

However, one Hook Bat snuck past their defenses. It fluttered around for a moment, then swooped down at Sora's exposed back, readying its sharp hook for attack.

As quickly as Sora heard the fluttering wings behind him and began to turn, they suddenly silenced. He finished his turn to see the woman, her sword extended, with a freed Heart drifting away next to it.

"Thanks," Sora said.

"Shut up and fight!" the woman barked. Sora obeyed, and turned his attention to a third Darkball.

"Sora!" Donald yelled, casting a spell. There was a brief flash, and suddenly the air around Sora began to spiral and spin. The dust in the room made the orb of sharp winds swirling around him visible.

"Thanks Donald!" Sora called, rushing the Darkball. The Areo spell did its job, with the raging winds striking the Darkball and knocking it off-balance before Sora's Keybalde even made contact with it.

Kairi took out two more Shadows, then focused on a Soldier that slashed at her. He blocked most of its swings, but the last one struck her and ran across her body. She grunted in pain, but was otherwise fine.

Donald engulfed himself in fire, and Goofy spun in place, whirling around with his shield striking all enemies around him. The woman used quick, fast strikes against the swarming Hook Bats, slicing at them and throwing them to the ground.

Weapons and spells flashed through the air, cutting through the Darkness until all of them faded. Sora and Kairi lowered and deactivated their Keyblades, and the woman sheathed her weapon. Kairi turned to her.

"Thank you," she said.

"Don't mention it," she replied gruffly. "Ever."

Kairi glanced over to Sora with an obvious 'I tried' look on her face. The woman turned around and headed out the door and back onto the path. Sora followed at a distance.

"Where are you going?" he called after her from the doorway.

"Back to town!" she yelled back. "There's someone I need to contact."

Sora nodded, and decided not to say anything. He watched her as she headed back the way they had come.

"So where do we go now?" Donald asked, putting away his staff.

Sora put his hand on his chin and pondered. "I guess the next step would be looking for this world's Keyhole," he said. "But I don't know where it is."

Kairi shrugged. "I guess we go back down the path and follow any Heartless we come across. If the Heartless are trying to take the Heart of this world, then chances are if we follow them, we'll get there."

Sora nodded. "Sure. But before we go, I want to take another look at that coffin thing."

"What coffin?" Goofy asked. Sora waved him along and hurried to the other room. Donald and Goofy followed closely, and Kairi walked slowly behind.

One over the pit, Sora couched down and pointed. "There," he said.

Donald and Goofy peered over the pit and down at the box and chains at the bottom. Donald inspected the item, then quacked questioningly.

"What is it?" Sora asked.

Donald pointed at the item. "On the lid there. See that symbol?"

Sora squinted. It was difficult to see anything on the box due to how dark it was, but he was just able to make out a round etching with crossed lines through it on the open lid of the casket.

"Yeah," Sora affirmed. "What does it mean?"

"It's the symbol for Light magic," Donald answered. "Someone put a powerful Light spell on that thing before they buried it. So powerful that they had to etch it with the symbol."

Sora turned his head to face Donald. "How do you know all that?" he asked.

Donald slowly looked over at Sora with a disappointed and frustrated look on his face, his bill curved downwards. "I'm a magician, remember?"

"Oh," Sora said, blushing with embarrassment. "Right."

Goofy brought them back on subject. "But why would they use such a powerful Light spell on that thing?"

Donald shook his head. "To hold something really Dark," he said.

Kairi leaned over Sora, placing a hand on his shoulder for balance as she peered down the pit with them. "Something so Dark they had to lock it away… but what was it? And who locked it up?"

Sora stood up. "I don't know. But that guy that woman was talking about, Dorgann Klauser, had to have something to do with it. We need to find out more about him."

Kairi glanced towards the doorway. "I don't think she'd be willing to share,"she said, gesturing.

Goofy pondered. "But she said she was investigating too. So she may not know any more than we do."

Suddenly, the ground shook. All four in the group held up their arms to maintain their balance. A loud rumble accompanied the quake, sounding like a thundering crash in the distance.

"What was that?" Donald quacked in alarm.

"It came from near the town!" Kairi shouted. She activated Destiny's Embrace.

"Let's go!" Sora called, activating Kingdom Key. He sprinted out the door with Kairi close behind, Donald behind her, and Goofy with his shield raised taking up the rear. The floor creaked and squealed as they rushed over it and out onto the porch. Sora paused a moment to check for danger, then hurried up the curved path through the woods. The trees blurred past as he ran, and he could not help but notice that clouds had overtaken the sky, greying the day and cutting off the warmth. The breeze had shifted into a cold wind. A storm was coming.

Sora burst from the woods, then skidded to a halt. Kairi did the same, and Donald and Goofy ran into each other trying to stop.

Standing int the field, just outside the town on the end of the bridge, was a massive creature. It was easily thirty feet tall, standing on two muscular hind legs. It had a dark red body, with two human-like arms with four fingers on each end, tipped with elongated claws. Its black head looked like that of a dinosaur or lizard, with a long mouth full of massive sharp teeth and two beady white eyes staring down. A long, pointed, devil-like tail protruded from its rear. On its chest was the massive red and black emblem of the Heartless. It opened its obsidian maw and unleashed a deep, guttural roar. It stomped at the ground, creating small quakes with each crashing stomp.

The woman was positioned at the Heartless' feet, slashing at its massive toes. It kicked, striking her and throwing her back with an audible yelp.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy rushed over. Kairi bent down and helped the woman up. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yes," the woman replied, surprisingly without any rudeness or frustration in her voice.

Sora gripped his Keyblade. "We need to bring it down. If we can deal enough damage to its legs, it might topple over and I can attack its head."

"We can't let it reach the town," the woman added. "If it crosses that bridge, everyone there will be in great danger."

"Got it," Sora replied. "Kairi, you and Donald try to cripple the left leg." Kairi nodded.

Sora looked up at the woman. "You, me, and Goofy will go for the right leg. Watch out for that tail." The woman and Goofy held their weapons in front of them.

"Ready?" Sora said. "Go!" He, the woman, and Goofy rushed the right leg, and Kairi and Donald sprinted towards the left. The Heartless growled as they approached, then threw its arms into the dirt and ran its claws through the ground after them. Kairi and Donald dove out of the way, while Goofy, Sora, and the woman jumped up at the precise moment to ride the beast's fingers closer to it. Sora was the first to hop off, and immediately charged and stabbed his Keyblade into the Heartless right above the ankle. Goofy spun like a tornado, striking the foot multiple times, and the woman leapt up and transformed her sword into a gun. She fired it in the air, unloading ammunition into the leg before turning it back into a sword and slashing as she landed.

The Heartless roared in fury, and lifted its foot to stomp them. Sora and the woman blocked, and Goofy was knocked back slightly as the massive appendage smashed into the ground, sending dirt and stone flying through the air.

On the other side, Donald cast a Blizzard spell, which pierced the Heartless' hide and slowed it down. Kairi performed a leaping strike, digging her Keyblade into the monster's toe. The monster hollared in pain and anger, and swung its sharp tail at hem. Donald managed to dodge, but Kairi was struck by the tail. The sharp edge slammed into her painfully, knocking her backwards and skidding her across the ground.

"Ouch," Kairi mumbled.

"Kairi!" Donald yelled. He raised his staff into the air and cast another spell. Suddenly a series of green bells and flowers appeared over Kairi's head, sprinkling golden and green magic dust on her. Kairi felt the pain lessen substantially, and jumped back to her feet. She looked at Donald.

"Thanks!" she called.

Donald nodded. A Cure spell was guaranteed to get someone back up after a blow like that.

Goofy rammed his shield into the Heartless' ankle. Sora and the woman made eye contact and nodded to each other. In unison, they jumped into the air and slammed their weapons together in a X-shaped formation. They then lunged in the air together until both weapons were crossed on either side of the Heartless' leg. They then twisted their weapons in their hands, slamming them together like a pair of giant scissors with the leg in between, cutting at the dark entity. The Heartless roared again. Sora kept his Keyblade deep in the monster's leg, hanging from the weapon and kicking away the monster's claws. The woman dropped to the ground.

"I'll crush you!" the woman shouted, then rushed forward, striking the leg with two upward slashes, followed by three side slashes, transitioning into a backflip kick and three more slashes, finishing her barrage with an upward then downward slash.

Once she was done, Sora pulled his Keyblade form the leg and dropped. The woman saw Sora coming at her, but instead of moving, positioned her sword horizontally and flat edge up below him. Sora landed gracefully on the sword's blade, keeping his balance on the thin surface. The woman felt the pressure of him landing, but then mustered all her strength to quickly raise her sword to the sky, throwing Sora up into the air as high as the Heartless' emblem. Sora slashed at the monster's red chest in midair, then Pointed the blade up at the reptilian head and blasted a flurry of magic projectiles at it. The monster shook its head and bellowed as the projectiles struck its face. Sora fell down to the ground, and landed unhurt on his feet.

Just then, Kairi swung at the Heartless' ankle and slashed it, leaving a massive gash. The monster screamed as its legs began to wobble, and it began to tip forward.

"Look out!" Goofy shouted, running away. Donald and Kairi sprinted in the opposite direction, and Sora and the woman leapt diagonally out of the way, both rolling to safety as the giant fell with a thunderous crash to the ground, polluting the air with flying dirt and debris.

When the dust cleared, Sora and his teammates saw the Heartless laying on its stomach, attempting to push itself back up.

"Oh no you don't!" Sora cried, leaping onto the creature's snout. The Heartless opened its mouth again and howled, and Sora had to maintain his balance on the shaking head. Kairi ran forward, and stabbed her Keyblade forward into one of the Heartless' beady eyes. Before the monster could even react, the woman mirrored her on the other side, stabbing the Heartless in the other eye with her sword, blinding it. The beast reared up and roared, almost throwing Sora up. It threw its clawed hands on the ground and swatted Kairi, the woman, Donald, and Goofy away before clawing into the ground and pushing itself back on its shaking feet. It gnashed its teeth and bellowed wildly, attempting to shake Sora off.

Sora, however, held on, and rolled forward on the snout until he was right between where the Heartless' eyes used to be. He lunged forward and stabbed his Keyblade into the creature's temple, burying the end deep. As the Heartless shrieked again, Sora muttered a spell.

"Deep freeze!"  
Ice crystals shot out and spread throughout the creature's head, causing it to throw its massive top back and growl. Sora pulled the Keyblade out, held it to the sky and yelled another spell.

"Thunder!"

A lightning bolt fell from the sky and struck right in the hole Sora had made in the creature's head. As soon as it struck, the Heartless stopped moving, and a bright light shone from the wound. Sora leapt off the head and ran vertically down the length of the Heartless' body, rolling to the ground as the giant beast loudly crumpled to the ground and vanished in a fume of dark smoke, releasing the Heart from within.

Sora panted as his allies walked up to him. To his surprise, the woman was the first to say something.

"Thank you," she said. Everyone was shocked. They never expected to hear something so nice from her. She continued: "If you had not helped me, the entire town may have been lost. I misjudged you all, and feel I owe you an apology." She sheathed her sword, then reached out with her hand to Sora. "I'm sorry for being so rude. I've been through a lot lately, though that's no excuse for how I acted. But you've more than proven yourselves to me." She nodded. "Do you forgive me?"

Sora paused for a moment, but swung his arm out and grasped her hand tightly. "Of course!" he said, smiling wide. "No harm done!"

For the first time, Sora saw the woman smile. It was a small, subtle smile, but a smile nonetheless. She released Sora's hand, then turned to Kairi.

"You asked me what my name was earlier," she said. "It's Lightning."

Kairi smiled. "I like that name."

Lightning nodded. "You remind me of someone very close to me, Kairi. Your heart is pure and your soul bright. You look a lot like her too."

Lighting turned back to Sora and leaned down next to his ear. Sora leaned in as Lighting whispered to him.

"Take good care of her," she said in the nicest tone Sora had ever heard her use.

"I will," Sora whispered back.

Lightning stood straight again. "Well," she said in her normal voice, but with a lightened tone, "I guess I can go to my contact now." She nodded at the group. "Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy. Thank you." Then she began walking to the bridge.

"Oh, Lightning!" Sora called. Lightning stopped and turned around.

"Yes?" she asked.

"This may not make a lot of sense," Sora began, "but do you know anything about something called a Keyhole? If we find it, we can make sure the Heartless don't keep coming."

Lightning glanced up at the sky with just her eyes. "I don't think I know about any Keyhole," she said. "But I'll tell you what. You go on to the other worlds you're no doubt on your way to, and I'll ask my contact about it as well as work it into my investigation. When you're done, just come on back and I'll tell you what I've found out." She smiled her subtle smile again. "I should be able to hold off these Heartless until then."

Sora beamed. "You'd do that for us? Thanks!"

Lightning nodded. "No, thank you," she said. She then turned back and walked down the remainder of the path until she reached the bridge. Donald waddled next to Sora, and Goofy wandered next to Kairi.

"I'm glad we got through to her," Goofy said cheerfully.

"Yeah," Donald said. "So are we heading to the next world?"

Sora nodded. "Sure. Lightning seems to have everything handled here."

Sora felt warmth on his skin. He looked up to see the clouds beginning to part, letting the sunshine through again.


	3. Kingdom of the Sun

The trip to the next world had been a relatively short one, with very few obstacles in their way save for a few colorful asteroids. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy took the time to relax a bit after their battle, and Sora looked up the giant Heartless they had fought in the digital version of Jiminy Cricket's Journal that he had Chip and Dale install in the ship computer. Sora found out it was called a "Great Defiler", which he thought sounded fitting.

Donald let him know when they were approaching the next world. It was much larger than the Quiet Town, with rolling green hills, long cliffs, and a dense jungle. From their position Sora could see a quaint little village on a hill on one side, and on the other, a massive golden palace designed to look like a face wearing a regal crown. Sora figured whoever lived there had to be of great importance.

"Where do you want to set down Sora?" Donald asked.

Sora thought about it for a moment. "Let's go to that village. They may not be as protected as that palace." Donald nodded and dipped the ship down.

* * *

Everything seemed to be falling into her lap. She reclined on her regal couch, soaking up the sweet feeling of victory after so many years of turmoil. All around her were her favorite hues of purple and scarlet, and her face was painted and plastered on every wall and tapestry. She grinned a toothy grin, admiring the feeling of her shimmering clothes on her gnarled, wrinkled skin. For once, it was all about her.

"Kronk, darling," she said in her smokey, but high-pitched voice, "I must admit you had me worried when you mixed up those poisons…"

The muscled henchman standing at the grill winced slightly, awaiting her reprimand.

"…but now that Kuzco's dead, all is forgiven," she finished. She leaned back further, relaxing.

Kronk chuckled slightly. In a dimwitted attempt to act casual, he leaned against the hot grill with his mitts shielding his skin from the scalding coals.

"Oh, oh yeah, he's uh…" he replied in his deep voice, stuttering to get the words out. The mitts caught fire, and Kronk quickly fumbled with them before throwing the burning accessories to the ground. "He's dead alright," he continued, still trying to act casual. The flames still rose, but Kronk quickly stomped on the mitts to put them out. "I mean, you can't get much deader than the dead he is right now, unless of course we killed him again!" He cringed at the words coming out of his own mouth.

His boss, the aged and skeletally thin Yzma, glared at him with suspicion. He was hiding something, and she was skeptical that it was something small. With Kronk, nothing was. Except for his brain.

"I suppose…" she muttered.

"Hey, did you see that sky today?" Kronk said suddenly, louder and more chipper than he had been speaking a few moments ago. "Talk about blue."

Yzma, however, was not fooled by Kronk's pathetic attempt to change the subject. Her sharp brow dropped in frustration. "Kronk…" she started.

"Gosh, when will the royal dresser be here?" Kronk interrupted, forcing a smile. "I tell you, I'm hard to fit. I wear a 66 long and a 31 waist…"

Yzma huffed once and sat up. glaring. She stood up and marched over to Kronk, a look of annoyance in her yellowed eyes.

"Kuzco is dead, right?" She reached up and pinched his cheeks in her long, sharp fingernails that had been painted a dark purple, cutting off his talking. She pulled him close. "Tell me 'Kuzco's dead'. I need to hear these words." She turned her head and leaned in, her small shriveled ear mere inches from Kronk's mouth.

"Uhh…" Kronk muttered. "Do you need to hear all those words exactly?" He winced, having enough brainpower to know he had given himself away.

Yzma released Kronk's face suddenly, but seized up in rage and stress. "He's still alive?!" she practically screamed through gritted teeth.

Kronk tried to soften the situation. "Well, he's not as dead as we would've hoped…"

"Kronk…" Yzma growled, her face turning bright red as she amassed every ounce of her strength to not kill him where he stood.

Kronk decided to try and make himself look a bit better. "Just figured I'd give you the heads up, just in case Kuzco ever came back."

This only made Yzma angrier. "He can't come back!" she yelled.

"Yeah, that would be awkward," Kronk said, "especially after that lovely eulogy."

"You think?!" Yzma shouted. She rushed up to Kronk and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him down to her enraged, skull-like face. He could smell her breath as well as noticed a green piece of food in her teeth as she screamed orders at him.

"You are going to gather the Heartless and go out to find him! If he talks, we're through! Now **MOVE**!"

* * *

The entire village seemed to rest on the same grassy hill, dotted with trees, small shrubs, and beautiful blue flowers. A winding dirt path swayed through, connecting the entire neighborhood. Sora had landed the Gummi Ship on a knoll next to the hilltop, which had a single house on top. Smoke drifted from the chimney. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy walked the path, breathing in the fresh air.

"Where should we go first?" Goofy asked.

Before anyone could respond, they suddenly heard a loud screaming coming from the house at the top of the hill. Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades.

"Someone's in trouble!" Kairi said. She ran to the house with Sora at her heels, and Donald and Goofy close behind.

After a short run, they reached the house. It was cozy and quaint, and the door was hanging open. The group ran inside, through a small kitchen, and into a larger living room. On the other end, standing in front of a closed door, was a large, fat man win a green poncho and brown cap. Beside him was a skinny llama with black wool on its head and neck and reddish-brown wool on the rest of its body. They were cowering in fear before a room filled with Heartless. Shadows darted closer to them, with fiery Red Nocturnes and twitching Rapid Thrusters floating above. In the center was a larger, llama-like Dark Spitter, which Sora had only seen a few of before.

"Stay where you are!" Kairi called to the man and the llama. "We can help!"

The Heartless turned away from their targets to face where the sound had come from. As they turned, Sora slid across the ground with his Keyblade extended, striking all of the Shadows as he zipped by. Kairi leapt into the air and began batting the airborne Heartless around. The Dark Spitter reared its head back, then spat a fast-moving black projectile at Goofy. He raised his shield in time to block it, but the black acid still sizzled on the metal.

Sora sliced through all of the Shadows with ease. A Red Nocturne fired a ball of fire at him, but Sora dodged and let the attack pass by and hit a careless Rapid Thruster instead. Sora stabbed at the air with his Keyblade, striking the Red Nocturne and destroying it.

Kairi spun in midair, using magic to pull the Rapid Thrusters and Red Noctures in towards her. Once they were close, Kairi whirled around with Destiny's Embrace, striking them all and destroying about half.

Donald attempted to creep up on the Dark Spitter while it was facing Goofy, but it noticed him and raised its hind legs. It kicked, its black hooves slamming into Donald and knocking him back. Goofy took the chance to ram its head with his shield, forcing the Heartless backwards. Donald jumped back to his webbed feet, his fist extended and wheeling his wing around in a fighting motion. He quacked angrily, then rushed the Dark Spitter.

"Take that!" he quacked, casting a Gravity spell. A large purple orb with shimmering colors appeared, pushing the Dark Spitter to the ground before exploding in a small burst. The Dark Spitter bellowed, and Goofy brought his shield down on its neck, killing it.

One Rapid Thruster remained, and Kairi struck it down. She scanned the room for more enemies. When none appeared, she lowered her Keyblade and approached the man.

"Thank you," the man said in a deep, kind voice. "You saved our lives."

Kairi smiled. "You're welcome."

"Dad?" a voice said. Kairi looked to see the man slowly open the door he had been in front of, revealing a pretty woman and two small children, a boy and a girl. The woman had a hand on her stomach, which was large and round from pregnancy.

"It's okay now," the man assured his family. "The monsters are gone. But just stay in here for a little longer, okay?" The man's sweet and soothing voice calmed the frightened children, who nodded as he gently closed the door. Sora, Donald, and Goofy walked over.

"That was very brave of you to protect your family like that," Goofy said.

The man smiled. "Thank you. They're my entire world."

Sora turned his attention to the llama. He bent over to get a good look at it.

"And who's this little guy?" he said in a babying voice. He lifted his hand and held it, palm up, towards the llama. However, when he motioned towards the animal, it suddenly flinched back.

"Uh-uh!" the llama said in a loud, sharp voice. "No touchy! No touchy! No touch!"

Sora retracted his hand and stepped back. "S-sorry," he stuttered. "I didn't…"

The llama scoffed. "Whatever. I'll let it go… for now."

The man shot a glance at the llama, then turned his attention back to Kairi and Sora. "My name's Pacha. And this is Kuzco."

The llama scoffed again and looked up at the man. "That's _Emperor_ Kuzco."

"Wait," Sora said, "you're an emperor?"

Kuzco turned his eyes back to Sora. "Cha," he said in his sarcastic voice. "A rich, powerful ball of charisma. This is my kingdom!"

Sora put his hand on his chin. "If you're the Emperor, who lives in that giant gold palace?"

"I do!" Kuzco barked. "But that stinking Yzma…"

Pacha stuck his hands out and motioned them at Kuzco to settle down. The llama saw the gesture and shut up, dropping his long ears behind his head. Pacha turned back to the group.

"That's the problem. His advisor, Yzma, used a potion to turn him into a llama, and then tried to use these monsters to kill him, and took his throne. She thinks he's dead. We need to get him back to his palace and into her secret lab so we can change him back."

Sora nodded. "Well, if this 'Yzma' is working with the Heartless, then she's no friend of ours. How do we get to the palace?"

Pacha walked over to a nearby window and pointed. "There was a faster way, but the bridge is out. We'd have to cut through part of the jungle, past the restaurant, and over a gorge to get there." He turned back to the group. "If you'd come with us and help keep those monsters off out backs, we'd really appreciate it. We can use all the help we can get."

Sora expected Kuzco to say something about them not needing help, but he simply nodded.

"Of course," Sora replied. "We'll help you get to the palace, where you can change Kuzco…" he trailed off and saw the llama staring at him with a brow raised. "…_Emperor_ Kuzco back to normal and we can stop Yzma from using the Heartless."

"Well then what are we waiting for?" Kuzco said, galloping to the front door. "I wanna get out of this body. Wouldn't you? Let's go."

Pacha shook his head, but smiled meekly. Before he joined the rest of them, he peeked in on his family.

"It's safe to come out now. I'm going to get Kuzco to the palace. We have some people that can fight the monsters away now. Love you." His wife nodded, and his children waved. Then Pacha turned and ran to catch up with Kuzco.

Kuzco kept a steady pace in front of the group, with Sora and Kairi following the closest and Donald and Goofy staying with Pacha in the back. Kuzco wound down a side trail, which ended in a dense jungle. He stepped on something that made him stumble and grunt in frustration, but kept moving.

As they entered the jungle, the environment turned dark. The canopies blocked out almost all sunlight, and dark-colored trees and vines engulfed the view. However, upon reaching a fork in the path, Kuzco and the others skidded to a halt.

"What's the matter?" Sora asked. "Do you not know the way?"

Kuzco scoffed again. "Please, I know my way. I'm the Emperor! And as such I am born with an innate sense of direction. But I know for a fact that there's a pack of killer jaguars around here."

Pacha leaned into Donald and Goofy. "Learned that the hard way," he muttered, careful not to let Kuzco hear.

Kairi nodded. "So we'll just have to be quiet and hope they don't hear us."

Kuzco stepped forward lightly, and did his best to move silently on his hooves. Sora and the others followed suit on their tiptoes. As they wandered silently down the trail, a Dark Spitter suddenly materialized in front of them. Kuzco let out an extremely loud, sharp yelp before Sora and Kairi double-teamed it, with Kairi taking out its legs and Sora finishing it off. They glanced over at Kuzco with judgmental looks on their faces. He chuckled in embarrassment, then kept moving.

Sora then heard a noise at his feet. He glanced down, and not a foot away from him was a pitch-black jaguar, snoring loudly. He heard Kairi gasp and turned to look. She had another jaguar sleeping on a rock a few feet away, a bone hanging from its mouth. Sora scanned ahead.

They were everywhere.

Sleeping jaguars, spread all over the jungle floor and low-hanging canopies.

"Uh oh," Kuzco squeaked fearfully.

Sora put a finger to his lips and tiptoed over the sleeping predator. Kairi motioned to Pacha, Donald, and Goofy to follow her single-file, just so no one woke any up. Donald, Goofy, and Pacha walked as silently as they could, dreading every footfall and crunching leaf.

As they approached the center of the pack, suddenly something jumped out from behind a log, startling everyone. Sora was not happy when he saw what it was.

It was a Small Squealer Heartless, resembling a twisted-up squirrel. It had a crooked body and beady red eyes. Its tail looked like that of a porcupine, covered in sharp quills. It hissed loudly.

Kuzco gasped and checked around, hoping the noise had not woken the jaguars. Luckily, it had not. However, it hissed louder. Sora activated his Keyblade, and swung it at the Heartless. It died in one hit, but released an incredibly loud, high-pitched squeal upon death that made everyone cover their ears and clench their eyes shut.

Sora opened his eyes, and saw that none of the jaguars had woken up. Kuzco noticed this too.

"Ha!" Kuzco yelled. Before anyone could so much as react, all of the jaguars leapt to their feet and growled, staring the party down. One pounced at Sora, but he hit it away with his Keyblade.

"Run!" Pacha yelled. He took off down a trail, with everyone following close behind. The pack gave chase, roaring and snarling as they followed.

As they ran, Sora, Kairi, and Donald all pointed their respective weapons back.

"Freeze!" they all said in unison.

Three Blizzard spells shot out at the pack, striking the leading jaguars with a flurry of damaging ice crystals. They staggered and some fell altogether, but the pack continued.

Sora turned his attention to up ahead. He saw Pacha, Kuzco, Donald, and Goofy running in front of them… until they suddenly stopped. Sora and Kairi were forced to stop as well.

"What is it?" Kairi asked frantically. The jaguars were gaining.

"We're out of trail!" Goofy hollered.

Sora pushed his way forward to see a steep cliff before them. The growth below was riddled with extremely thick vines and lush canopies. Sora scanned the growth, and saw an extremely thick vine running from the edge of the cliff downwards. It was just big enough to support their weights.

"Jump!" Sora shouted, leaping off the edge. He was in freefall for about two seconds with the air rushing around him before landing on the vine. It was more slippery than he expected, and he immediately began to slide downwards. He regained his balance, then surfed down the vine.

"You heard him!" Kairi yelled, jumping off as well. Donald and Goofy followed, and Pacha scooped up Kuzco and jumped. As he entered the air, he did not even notice a set of razor-sharp teeth snap at his sandal.

Sora slid down the vine with relative ease. Kairi struggled to keep her balance, Donald stayed flat on his feet, and Goofy hopped into his shield and sledded down. Pacha was keeping his balance surprisingly well, but Kuzco was screaming loudly for the entire ride.

As they surfed, they suddenly broke off from the growth and slid by a magnificent view of a huge waterfall. Even though he was going by at blinding speeds, Sora took the few moments to admire it. Sora then turned his attention forward, and saw that it was safe to drop off now, as the ground was only about five feet below and consisted of soft-looking sand. Sora hopped off the vine and landed on his feet. The impact was a touch more painful than he expected, but still safe. Kairi followed with a grunt, but stumbled forward after she landed. Sora swooped in and wrapped a hand around her waist and another around her arm, catching her. She smiled up at him.

"Thanks," she said sweetly. Sora blushed.

Donald landed next, unharmed. Goofy, however, slid completely off the vine and over their heads, letting out a comical holler as he flew by. He crashed onto the ground and flopped onto his back, but lifted his hand in a thumbs-up to signify that he was okay.

Pacha landed comfortably next, clutching a still-screaming Kuzco in his arms. It took a few seconds for Kuzco to snap back to reality. He stopped screaming and instead panted, then glanced around and hopped out of Pacha's arms.

"Let's…" he panted, "not… do that… ever…. again."

Pacha chuckled.

"Which way now, Pacha?" Sora asked, glancing back the way they came. He could not even see the jaguars on the distant cliff anymore.

Pacha scanned his surroundings. "Well, judging by where the waterfall is, it should be a short hike out of this jungle until we reach the next landmark: Mudka's Meat Hut. It's a restaurant. Once we find that, it should be a quick run to the gorge." He pointed east. "That way."

Sora nodded and led the party in a slow walk through the jungle, catching their breaths from the chase. The jungle was dense, but not impossible to trek through. Sora constantly watched his footing, careful not to step on a small animal scurrying by or worse, another jaguar.

About thirty minutes later, Sora saw a large clearing ahead. He pushed a vine out of the way, and held it back for Kairi and the others. They all stepped into the clearing, with Sora filing in last.

In front of them was a small wooden building perched on a hillside. It had a straw-thatched roof and a massive sign depicting a cartoon mascot holding a dish. Wonderful smells of cooked meat drifted from the establishment. Sora sniffed the air.

"Smells great," Kairi said, also taking in the smells.

"They're delicious," Pacha said proudly.

Kuzco shook his wooly head in disapproval. Sora guessed that, being royalty, he had a different opinion on 'peasant' food.

"So which way to the gorge, Pacha?" Donald asked.

Pacha perked his head up. "Should be just northwest of here," he said. Suddenly he was interrupted by a sound. He glanced over at the source.

Sora's stomach growled. He placed his hands on his abdomen and blushed. "Sorry," he said sheepishly.

Pacha smiled. "How about we stop to eat a little something?" he asked.

Kuzco glared at him. "Really? That's your priority?"

Pacha shrugged. "He, they're helping up out. The least we can do is buy them lunch."

Before Kuzco could retort, a loud call came from the diner's entrance.

"Thanks, Mata!" a loud, burly voice called. A large, muscular man in a colorful uniform stepped out of the restaurant. He waved to someone inside, then turned on his heel and faced the group. He gasped and eyed them.

"Oh no!" Kuzco said. "It's Kronk! Yzma's right-hand man!"

"Kuzco!" Kronk whispered loudly to himself. "And the peasant! And… others?!"

He shook his head. "Keep it together, Kronker," he said to himself. "Remember what Yzma told you." He looked around worriedly. "Uhh… come!" he shouted.

All around the clearing, Heartless materialized. Shadows rose from the ground. Darkballs and Rapid Thrusters appeared in the air. A small group of Small Squealers scattered from the jungle, with a Dark Spitter in tow. It bellowed as it approached.

Pacha and Kuzco yelped and stepped back. Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades as Donald and Goofy pulled out their weapons.

"Stay back!" Sora told Pacha and Kuzco. "We've got this!"

The Dark Spitter was the first to attack. It spat at Sora, and he was unable to block in time. The acid hit him on the arm, stinging on impact. Sora shook his arm to get the liquid off, though his skin skill felt the popping spit sting on his arm. Kairi rushed the Dark Spitter as it prepared another attack, but Kairi struck it in the face and made it swallow it back down. She let loose with a barrage of blows on the Heartless' neck and head as the other Heartless closed in.

Donald flailed his staff at the Silent Squeakers, each of them going down in one or two hits, but shrieking incredibly loudly as they did. Donald was forced to cover his ears, and one took the opportunity to jump up and smack him in the bill with its quilled tail. Donald quacked angrily and hit it over the head destroying it.

Goofy hurled his shield at a Darkball, knocking it backwards. A Rapid Thruster attempted to attack, but was struck and destroyed by the shield as it returned to Goofy's hand. Upon retrieving his shield, Goofy bashed the Darkball to the ground.

Sora stayed with Pacha and Kuzco, batting away the Shadows and Rapid Thrusters that approached. A Small Squealer got through and jumped at the two, but Pacha swatted it away with his hand, throwing it into one of Donald's Thunder spells.

Kairi brought down the Dark Spitter, then turned her attention to the Shadows, which seemed to continue pouring out of the jungle at a frightening rate. She swatted one into another, then raised her Keyblade to the air and cast a Thunder spell, sending lightning down that wiped out a few she had already weakened.

A Darkball rammed Goofy, sending him skidding back towards Sora. The two made eye contact, and simultaneously got an idea. They nodded at each other, then Goofy tossed his shield into the air. Sora hit it with his Kingdom Key like a baseball bat, sending it flying into the Darkball. When it came back, Sora hit it again, striking and destroying the Darkball. He and Goofy then threw their spinning weapons together at a group of Shadows, striking all of them. When their weapons returned to them, Goofy put his shield out in front of him and jumped into Sora's arms, laying horizontally. He applied a little magic to himself and began to smoke. Sora aimed him at a tight swarm of Rapid Thrusters and let go, sending Goofy flying like a rocket into the swarm and bashing all of them. Hearts were released all over the battlefield as the Heartless fell.

Goofy landed back on his feet, and Sora gave him a thumbs-up, not noticing a Shadow sneaking up behind him. It lunged.

"Look out!" Kuzco cried. He swiftly turned around and raised his hind legs, then delivered a powerful kick to the Heartless, defeating it.

Sora turned just in time to see Kuzco defeat the Heartless. "Thank you," he said.

Kuzco smiled, then held his head high. "Woo-hoo!" he shouted. "Woah, look at me and my bad self, I whooped that monster's butt for you!" He grinned and looked down where the Shadow had been. "'Oh, I'm a dying demon creature and I'm taking you with me'. Well, not today, pal!" He began to strut in place. "Uh-huh, uh-huh uh-huh uh-uh."

Sora looked over at Pacha, who simply shrugged and mouthed "What are you gonna do?"

Then Sora remembered Kronk. He scanned for him and saw him cowering behind a log, watching.

"Oh boy," Kronk muttered, before turning around and running.

"Follow him!" Sora shouted, running after Kronk with his Keyblade out. The group obeyed.

Sora chased Kronk down through the grassy knolls and rolling hills, dodging the occasional tree or large rock. Kronk was a lot faster than he expected, but he was not going to leave Sora's sights. It was not until about two minutes into the chase that Sora realized he had left the diner behind and was now in an open plain. Dead ahead was a massive gorge, separating them from another grassy plain and a trail that led forward. Sora's eyes followed the trail and saw that it led up a steep mountain, with the golden palace settled firmly on top.

Kronk screeched to a halt when he saw the gorge, turning to face Sora and the others. Sora stopped a few yards away, with Kairi and the others joining by his side a few seconds later.

"Oh boy," Kronk said again, clearly worried. "I guess I'm gonna have to fight my way outta this one."

With that, he ran and Sora swinging his arms. He threw a punch, but Sora imply dodged and hit him away. Kronk groaned loudly and tried to throw another punch, but Pacha grabbed his arm. Kuzco charged in and headbutted Kronk in the stomach, sending him flying back. Kronk moaned as he got up, staggering backwards.

"Hey!" Kairi shouted suddenly. "Look out for the - " Too late. Kronk stumbled back and fell screaming off of the cliff. Sora ran to the edge and tried to grab him, but he was already out of sight when Sora reached the edge. Even though he had been working with Heartless, Sora sensed that he was not really a bad guy.

Sora turned around. Everyone wore a remorseful expression.

"Poor guy," Goofy said.

Sora nodded in agreement, but knew they had to focus on the matter at hand. "If Yzma sent Kronk and the Heartless out, that means she knows Kuzco is still alive. We need to hurry. When she finds out Kronk isn't back, she might send Heartless to the village." He walked up to Pacha. "Is this the gorge?"

Pacha nodded. "Yep. Hold on one moment." Pacha reached to a small bag on his waist and pulled out a bow and single arrow with rope tied around it. He jogged over to the cliff's edge and fired the arrow across, striking a tree on the other side. He then wrapped the rope around a tree on their side, tying it tightly with several knots. He pulled a smaller piece of rope out of his pocket. He then looked to Sora and the others.

"I have enough to get Kuzco and me across, but not enough for you guys," he said. "Do you know of a way across?"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy were silent and they thought, but Kairi spoke up. "We can use our weapons as bars and slide across," she said. Pacha nodded. He gestured Kuzco forward, and then tied a secure rope seat on the tightrope. Kuzco hopped in, and Pacha sent him sliding down the rope to the other side. Pacha followed using his rope to slide across.

Sora decided to step up next. He threw the Keyblade over the rope and grabbed both the handle and the end, right below the bit. He took a deep breath, tightened his grip, and pushed off. The Keyblade supported him as he ziplined down Pacha's rope, whizzing by at incredible speeds. Before he knew it, he felt his feet hit solid ground on the other side.

As soon as he got clear, Kairi followed, doing the same thing with Destiny's Embrace. Donald used his staff, and Goofy used his shield.

"Well," Pacha said, gesturing forward. "To the palace."

* * *

The climb up the mountain had taken about twenty minutes, but it was not too difficult. However, as they climbed, Sora noted that the wind was picking up, the clouds were growing darker, and he felt raindrops on his skin. Fortunately, they reached the palace before it began to downpour.

Sora immediately headed for the entrance, but Kuzco pulled him aside.

"Not that way," he whispered. "There are guards. There's a side entrance to Yzma's secret lab."

Sora nodded and followed the llama. "If it's a secret lab, how do you know about it?" Sora asked.

Kuzco gave him a knowing glance and smirked slightly. He stopped and raised his front legs, and gestured his hooves like air quotes. "'Secret lab'," he emphasized.

Sora laughed.

It was not long before the group found themselves going down a flight of stone stairs. Stone walls soon encompassed their view, and a stone ceiling parallel with the ground covered their heads from the rain. As Sora stepped inside, he saw a dimly lit chamber with a single carving of a demonic-looking bat with long lower fangs on the wall. They were obviously levers of some kind. Donald and Goofy approached the carving.

"This must be the way in," Goofy said, examining the carving.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Donald asked. "Pull the lever!"

Goofy reached out and grasped the left lever, pulling it down. Suddenly, a trapdoor opened below Donald's feet. He quacked loudly as he fell, followed by a loud splash. Sora, Goofy, and Kairi peered down the hole, but all they could see was blue and all they could hear was splashing water and the furious quacking of a very angry duck. Suddenly they heard a noise behind them. Everyone whirled around to see a door open in the stone, and a sopping wet and extremely angry-looking Donald stepped out. A large green crocodile was behind him, holding his tail feathers securely in its jaws.

"Why do they even have that leaver?" Donald growled. He reached back and smacked the crocodile across the face, making it let go with a yelp and scurry back through the door right before it closed. Donald marched back up and began tapping his foot.

Sora smiled meekly, reached over, and pulled the other lever. The wall opened up, and before them was a brightly-colored slide. Sora decided that Donald should go first and gestured to him. A still-frustrated Donald marched forward and hopped on the slide, favoring his rear end. Kuzco and Pacha followed, then Goofy, who hollered in excitement. Sora stepped aside and allowed Kairi to go first.

She smiled. "What a gentleman," she said, laughing. Sora laughed too. Kairi hopped on the slide, cheering as she slid down. Sora followed.

As he raced down the sleek slide, he could briefly see colorful murals of animals flash by. He wondered how many more fast-moving slides he would be on in this world.

Sora landed safely on his feet at the end of the slide, and found himself in a mysterious room. It was full of beakers, tubes, cauldrons, and bottles, oozing with pink and purple potions and poisons. Animal-shaped cabinets lined the walls, and a snake-themed chandelier hun from the ceiling.

Pacha began rummaging through the vials of potions. "What does it look like?" he asked Kuzco.

Kuzco scanned the tubes and beakers. "I don't know, just keep looking!" he said frantically.

Sora picked up a pink bottle and shook it slightly. A drop spilled from the top and landed at his feet, creating a dull explosion that left a black dot on the floor. Sora put the potion back.

Kairi opened a wooden chest. "Sora," she called. Sora hurried over as Kairi pulled two pots with green stars on them and two blue cubes out of the chest. They were a common sight for Sora: the green pots were Potions that could be used to heal, and the cubes were Ethers he could use to replenish his magic supply. "Think we could use these?" Kairi asked, gesturing with a sly smile on her face.

Sora nodded. "Good find, Kairi," he said. Kairi handed him one of each, and Sora magically pocketed them both.

Pacha hurried over to a cabinet cared in the shape of an owl. He reached over and pulled the wing-shaped doors open, revealing a collection of pink potions. "Over here!" he called.

Kuzco, Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy rushed over and examined the contents. Each cluster of vials had a label with an animal underneath, no doubt signifying what it would change the user into.

Pacha scanned the labels. "Let's see…" he muttered. "Mice, ducks, dogs…" he reached the one with a human drawn on it. There was no potion in the slot.

"Oh, my," a smokey, sinister voice said. Everyone whirled around. Sora saw a skeletal elderly woman sep out of the shadows. She wore a round purple hat with a gemstone, long triangluar earrings, a long purple dress, and purple high heels. Beside her stood Kronk with his arms crossed. "Looking for this?" she held up a vial of pink liquid in her boney fingers.

"Yzma!" Kuzco shouted.

"Wait," Sora interrupted. He pointed at Kronk with a confused expression. "First off, how are you alive? Second, how'd you get back here before us?"

Kronk shrugged with an equally confused look. "Well, you got me. By all accounts, it doesn't make sense."

Yzma pondered for a moment, then shrugged. "Oh well. Back to business."

To Sora's surprise, Kuzco stepped forward. "Look, I admit it," he said to Yzma. "Maybe I was't as nice as I should have been. But Yzma, do you really want to kill me?!"

Yzma smiled cruelly. "Think of it as: you're being let go. Once I rule as Empress, I will command everyone, and not just the Heartless!"

Kairi stepped behind Kuzco. "What do you know about the Heartless, Yzma?" she asked demandingly.

Yzma grinned. "Silly girl. I care little where these forces of Darkness came from, I only consider them a resource to be utilized. And I have!" She pointed at Kairi. "Perhaps when we're done, I'll turn you into a flea. A tiny little flea."

She laughed and pulled a large, jagged knife out from a loop on her dress. She threw the knife to Kronk, who clumsily caught it.

Yzma grinned as Shadows and Dark Spitters materialized around the lab.

"Finish them off," Yzma commanded.

Kronk sighed. "I hate being in the middle." He gripped the knife, then ran at the group. The Dark Spitters all spat. The Shadows lunged.

Donald and Goofy fought the Dark Spitters, carefully dodging their kicking legs and acid spit. Pacha and Kuzco kicked at the Shadows, knocking them to Sora and Kairi, who slashed at the Heartless that passed in front of them. Kronk rushed to Sora and brought down the knife, wincing with regret. Sora lifted his Keyblade and blocked it, then pushed Kronk back. The two dueled with their respective blades, loud clanging emitting from each metallic impact. Suddenly a Shadow jumped at Sora and clawed his back. Sora grunted in pain as the Heartless threw him on his back to the ground. It reared for another attack, but Sora swatted at it lying down and destroyed it. However, Kronk loomed over him, knife ready.

"Sora!" Kairi cried. She finished off the Shadow she was fighting and jumped between him and Kronk as the latter dropped the blade. She raised Destiny's Embrace and blocked, holding Kronk off until Sora got to his feet. Just as Sora was about to help Kairi, a Dark Spitter charged him. He blocked, but was pushed back. The Dark Spitter charged again, and Sora was forced to fend it off.

Kronk grunted as he tried to overpower Kairi. As strong as he was, Kairi held on, but barely. She, like Sora, had seen the light in Kronk's Heart as well.

"Kronk!" she said. "You don't have to listen to her. You're a good person!"

Kronk winced with regret, but said nothing.

Kairi looked into his eyes. "You know this is wrong. We don't have to fight!" Then she broke the connection between their weapons, twisting her Keyblade so that the knife was pulled from Kronk's hands and flung to the floor. She swatted at Kronk's abdomen, striking him and pushing him back. Kronk expected another attack, but instead Kairi just gave him a sorrowful look and turned to help Sora with the Dark Spitter.

Kronk stood straight and bit his finger, wondering what to do.

"You believe her, don't you?" a voice said. Kronk looked to his right shoulder and saw what looked like a miniature version of himself dressed in a bright white robe, with two wings coming from its back and a golden halo over its head. "You are a good person."

"Don't listen to that guy!" another voice said. Kronk looked to his left shoulder and saw another miniature visage of himself, but garbed in a tight red outfit with horns, a spiked tail, small wings, and holding a gold trident. "He's trying to lead you down the path of righteousness. I'm gonna lead you down the path that rocks!"

"I dunno, guys," Kronk said. "You're kind of stressing me out here."

Sora finished off the Dark Spitter as more Shadows started to crawl forward. He heard Kronk talking, and looked to him. He was standing by himself, talking to what looked like his shoulders.

Yzma noticed it too. She wore a look of confusion and concern on her face, then looked at Sora and the others and pointed at him with her thumb. Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Pacha, and Kuzco all simultaneously shrugged before going and fighting more Heartless.

Yzma turned back to Kronk, angered.

"Kronk!" she yelled, interrupting Kronk's conversation with himself. He looked to face her.

"Why did I think you could do this?" she reprimanded. "This one, simple thing. It's like I'm talking to a monkey! A really, really, big, stupid monkey named Kronk!" She crossed her skinny arms. "And you want to know something else? I never liked your spinach puffs! Never!"

Kronk gasped. His eyes filled with tears.

"Okay," the shoulder imp said, holding its trident aloft. "She's going down."

"Now, now," the shoulder angel said. "Remember, guys: 'from above, the wicked shall receive their just reward'."

Kronk instinctively looked up, and saw the chandelier hanging above. He noted where it was positioned, and got an idea.

"Kid!" he called. Both Kairi and Sora looked up at him. He pointed at a rope nearby. "Cut that!"

Kairi moved first, dodging the approaching Shadows and cutting the rope with her blade. The chandelier fell from the ceiling, whooshing as it dropped through the air and right down on the Shadows, destroying them.

Kairi smiled at Kronk. "Thank you," she said.

Yzma ran over and grabbed Kronk by the collar, growling. She started to shake and punch him, but Kronk pushed her away. Yzma stumbled backwards and fell onto the floor, dropping the vial.

"Grab it!" Sora said, chasing the potion.

Yzma jumped up, grabbed Kronk, and threw him to the ground. She kicked him once, then ran after the vial herself. Kuzco charged at her, headbutting her. Yzma flew across the room and crashed into the cabinet of poisons. She stood up and whirled behind it before shoving it slightly, causing all of the vials to spill out and onto the ground around the one Sora was chasing. It was lost in a crowd of vials, all looking the same.

"Oops," Yzma said sarcastically. "Clumsy me."

Sora, Donald, and Goofy dropped down and started rummaging through the vials frantically, looking for any sort of label, mark, or distinguishing features they could use to identify the potion they were looking for.

Yzma reached up and pulled a tassel on the wall. It let out a clinking sound, and an alarm began going off.

"Which one, which one?" Yzma mocked. "Better hurry. I'm expecting company."

Sora heard a loud hiss. He and Kairi looked over and saw one of the walls sliding down, steam rising from its base. Pale light flooded into the room from behind it, but a large shadow stood in the hole. The wall disappeared into the floor, and a massive paw stepped out. Pacha and Kuzco rushed over and began collecting the vials, piling them into Pacha's poncho.

"Just take them all!" Donald yelled, drawing his staff.

"Try them out while we protect you!" Goofy called, pulling out his shield.

Yzma cackled and grabbed a nearby tapestry. It suddenly retracted, pulling her up the wall. When it was almost gone, she stepped off onto a small stone balcony jutting from the wall.

The beast stepped out, growling loudly. It was a massive Heartless, easily as large as Cerberus from back in the Olympus Coliseum. It resembled a giant black jaguar with red eyes. Each of its paws were armed with claws as long as a Keyblade, and had a puffy, spiked tail similar to that of a Small Squealer. On its chest was the Heartless emblem, as large as Sora. It roared like a tiger and pounced.

"Move!" Sora yelled, diving out of the way. Kairi, Donald and Goofy did the same as the Heartless crashed down where they were standing.

Yzma laughed maniacally. "Ladies and gentlemen," she yelled out, "allow me to introduce the biggest, baddest Heartless I command! Yzma's own little pet: the Cat-astrophe!"

Pacha and Kuzco took the opportunity while Yzma was distracted to dart into a large hall nearby. Pacha pulled the stopper out of one of the vials.

"We've gotta change you back," he said. "Try this one!" He put the vial in Kuzco's mouth, and Kuzco downed the entire thing. There was a blast of pink steam, and suddenly Kuzco was not standing there anymore. Pacha looked around.

"Uh… Pacha?" Kuzco's voice said. Pacha looked down and saw a small turtle at his feet.

Pacha shook his head. "This is gonna take a while."

* * *

The Cat-astrophe roared again, and immediately began swiping at Sora with its claws. Sora blocked the attack, then dove forward and struck its leg. It barely flinched.

Donald sent a series of fire balls at the Heartless' face, disorienting it. Goofy ran to one of the back legs and executed his whirling attack, slamming the leg repeatedly with his shield. The Cat-astrophe kicked, striking Goofy and sending him skidding painfully across the floor.

"Sora!" Kairi shouted. Sora turned to see Kairi running at him, Keyblade ready. She motioned towards the beast's head with her eyes. Sora understood the gesture and positioned himself; he bent his knees slightly, arced his back, and held the Kingdom Key over hos head horizontally. Kairi jumped up onto his Keyblade, and Sora boosted her up. She jumped off and lunged right at the Cat-astrophe's face, striking it several times. It yowled angrily and clawed at her, but she dropped just in time. She grabbed onto the black fur lining its neck, and took the opportunity to slash there before letting go and dropping back to the ground.

The Cat-astrophe hissed and spun in place, swinging its tail at everyone. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy were all struck by the sharp quills, which sent them all to the ground. Yzma cheered.

* * *

"Try this one!" Pacha said, sticking another vial in Kuzco's mouth. Kuzco drank it down, and another flash of pink engulfed the room. When the steam cleared, Kuzco was a tiny red bird fluttering in midair.

Pacha sighed.

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy got back up just as the Cat-astrophe pounced again. Everyone jumped before it landed, and Sora jumped onto its paw. He scaled the Heartless' leg, swinging up onto its back. He slashed at the back as he ran up to the head. Once there, he ran his Keyblade directly through one of the monster's ears. The Cat-astrophe yelped loudly, and Sora leapt off the head, dragging the entire beast down as he fell. As he made contact with the ground, so did the Cat-astrophe's head, slamming onto the floor. It yowled angrily.

Donald came up and hit it on the nose. "That's a bad cat!" he cried.

Goofy ran up and rammed the beast on the temple, and Kairi struck its snout over and over. The Cat-astrophe pulled, but Sora kept his Keyblade down, hoping to keep it pinned. He strained against the Heartless' strength.

However, as strong as Sora was, he could not hold the Cat-astrophe's head down for long. It yanked up, pulling Sora off his feet and flinging him into the air. The Keyblade pulled out of the ear as he was sent careening above the Heartless. That was when he noticed that it had flung him right at Yzma's balcony.

* * *

"We're not getting anywhere with you picking the vials!" Kuzco shouted, frustrated. "I'm picking the next one!"

"Fine by me!" Pacha shouted back, also losing his patience.

"Give me that one!" Kuzco said, gesturing towards one. Pacha yanked off the stopper and poured it down Kuzco's throat. There was another flash, and Pacha felt himself being pushed backwards. When the steam cleared, he found himself practically hugging an enormous whale.

"Don't you say a word," the whale muttered.

* * *

Sora arced his body as he flew towards the villainess, who held her hands up in front of her as she backed up. Sora landed on the balcony in front of her, making her jump. Three vials fell from her dress.

Sora glanced up at her. "So you kept the potion for Kuzco on you, eh? And yet you still brought decoys."

Yzma flashed her teeth. "To use against brats like you!" she shouted. Both she and Sora dove at the vials. Sora reached for one, but Yzma slapped his face and took it from him. Sora retaliated by ramming her with the flat edge of the Keyblade, making her drop the potion. It rolled off the balcony and onto a potted plant below. In a puff of smoke, the plant changed shape to resemble a llama.

Sora dove down to try and reach another one, but Yzma jumped up into the air and landed on top of him, driving her sharp elbow into his back. He grunted as he fell face-down, then threw her off. Sora scrambled on his hands and knees after one of the vials and Yzma jumped at it as well. The two collided with each other and Sora was knocked back. Yzma landed right on the vial, causing it to break. There was a flash of pink steam, and Sora could hear Yzma laughing.

* * *

"Open up!" Pacha told Kuzco. He poured his last vial into his mouth, and Kuzco swallowed. His body morphed again into a familiar form.

"Yay, I'm a llama again!" Kuzco cheered. Then he paused, and his expression turned sour. "Wait…"

* * *

Kairi held back the Cat-astrophe's massive claws, pushing them back. Donald sent a bolt of lighting to strike it in the eye, disorienting it. Goofy threw his shield at its neck.

Suddenly, there was a flash of pink from the balcony. Kairi turned to see purple steam wafting from the stone outcropping, with Sora jumping to his feet. She heard a bought of evil laughter.

Sora held his Keyblade firm, waiting for whatever animal Yzma had mutated into to step out. As the steam dissipated, he suddenly saw her, and could not help but stare.

Seated on the stone was a small grey kitten, looking up with confused eyes. It meowed slightly. Sora smirked. He saw the last vial nearby, and bent down to pick it up. Suddenly, the cat jumped onto his face and began scratching him. Sora reached up with his free hand and grabbed the feline, throwing her off. The cat jumped down and grabbed the vial in its claws. She held it over the edge of the balcony.

"Looking for this?" she said in a squeaky, comical voice. She cleared her throat. "Is that my voice?" she said. "Is that _my_ voice?" She paused. "Oh well," she concluded, still with the vial outstretched.

"Don't drop it!" Sora yelled.

"I'm not going to drop it, you fool!" the cat Yzma squeaked. "I'm going to drink it. And once I turn back into my beautiful self, I'm going to kill you!" The cat flashed a sharp grin and cackled. However, as she retracted her paw back over the balcony to undo the stopper, Sora quickly reached swatted her with his Keyblade, sending her flying. She threw the vial up in the air upon impact, and Sora caught it in midair. The cat screamed as it traveled over her Cat-astrophe and slammed into a wall on the other side, falling unconscious to the ground.

The Cat-astrophe snarled at Kairi, rearing back for another attack. Kairi braced herself. Suddenly, she heard a noise. It was some sort of high-pitched screaming. She looked up and saw a small grey kitten flying through the air. The Cat-astrophe noticed it too, and looked up inquisitively.

Kairi realized that this was her chance. She rushed forward and climbed the Heartless' leg, leaping onto its back. The beast tried to buck Kairi off, but Kairi kept her footing. She ran up to the head like Sora had done. Once she was there, she jumped into the air, pointed her Keyblade down, and stabbed down through the Cat-astrophe's snout. The monster roared, then yelped. It collapsed onto the ground, and Kairi rolled off and back onto the ground. It crashed onto the stone, soon evaporating into black smoke.

Kairi panted as Sora climbed down from the balcony. Donald and Goofy wandered over.

"Where're Kuzco and Pacha?" Sora wondered.

"Here," Kuzco siad. Sora followed the voice to see Pacha and Kuzco, still a llama, wander in from the hall. "None of them worked," he said sadly.

Sora smirked. "None but this one," he said, holding his hand up. However, there was nothing there. Sora jumped, then began scanning the ground. He heard a high-pitched laugh and looked over.

Cat Yzma was standing where the Cat-astrophe had been, clutching the vial closely. She cackled maniacally, only pausing to deliver a last taunt.

"I win!"

As she smirked, suddenly a frying pan swung out of the shadows and onto her head. She collapsed down, dropping the vial. A muscular hand picked it up. Kronk stepped forward, gingerly handing the vial to Kairi. He did not say anything, but simply smiled. Kairi smiled back as she took the vial from him, then turned to Kuzco.

"Let me get this for you," she said, pulling out the stopper. She gave it to Kuzco, who did his best to hold it in his hooves. He smiled.

"Thank you all," he said, gesturing to all of his allies in the room, including Kronk. He held the vial to his lips. "Well, see ya on the other side." He drank it, and pink steam enveloped his form.

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy stood before Emperor Kuzco's throne, with Kronk just off to the side. He looked exactly like Sora figured he would look as a human: tall and skinny, with long black hair. Kronk had returned a golden crown to his head.

Emperor Kuzco smiled and leaned down on his throne. "I can't thank you all enough," he said with gentleness in his voice. "If there's anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to tell me."

Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all looked to Sora, who stepped forward. "Actually," he said, "may I come up there for a moment?"

Kuzco looked surprised, but nodded and waved him up. Sora hurried to ascend the stairs, soon coming face-to-face with the Emperor. Right behind his throne, a blue outline of a Keyhole glimmered.

"With your permission, your Majesty," Sora said, clearly being overdramatic, "I would like to perform a task that ensures the monsters cannot destroy your lands." He smiled.

Kuzco laughed. "Go ahead!" he said. Sora nodded, then activated his Keyblade and stepped behind the throne. He raised the Keyblade and fired a blue beam from the end, whch entered the Keyhole. The Keyhole glowed white and shimmered, then the sound of a click was heard. Sora deactivated his Keyblade, and the outline disappeared. He then returned to the front of the throne.

"Before you go," Kuzco said, "here is a token of my gratitude. It's the least I can do." He extended his hand and gave Sora a small item. Sora gently took it and examined it: it was a small wooden carving of a llama, tied on a string covered in colorful beads and a golden tassle.

"Thank you, your Majesty," he said.

Kuzco smiled, then rushed up and hugged Sora. Sora was surprised to say the least.

"What happened to 'no touchy'?" Sora joked. Kuzco chuckled.

After he released Sora, he gestured his hand towards another room. "Well, I need to go," he said. "I need to tell Pacha some news I know he'll be excited about." He waved. "Don't be a stranger."

Sora waved back. "Tell Pacha that we'll be coming back to take you guys up on that lunch offer."

Sora descended the stairs as his friends and Kronk smiled up at him. Kuzco slid down a rope, and headed for the other room.

As Sora approached his friends, they all turned to walk out with him. As they passed Kronk, Kairi gave him a thumbs-up. Kronk returned the gesture.


	4. Nottingham

Back on the Gummi Ship, Sora handed the controls over to Donald. Leaning back in his seat, he activated his Kingdom Key and pulled Kuzco's gift from his pocket. He studied the humble llama carving, the colorful beads, and the shining tassel for a moment, then unclipped the Keychain from the Keyblade and quickly replaced it with the llama pendant. In a quick flash of light, the Keyblade changed, transforming from the Kingdom Key to a Crown of Sun. Sora smiled as he inspected his Keyblade's new form: it resembled a large wooden llama carving, with angular spirals wrapping around the guard and golden spirals and stripes decorating it. The bit now resembled the golden crown Kuzco wore, dotted with gems and smooth cuts to look like the palace.

The next world was an even shorter distance away from the last one. Sora immediately saw a large rectangular castle with several round towers and a circular courtyard. Surrounding it was a village of small cottages, a church with a graveyard, and a field of bright tents. Woods surrounded the town, covering the rest of what Sora could see with large trees.

"Another kingdom?" thought Sora.

* * *

Sora craned his neck to look around the trees. They were tall, but sunlight filled the woods and kept them warm and bright. They reminded Sora a lot of the Hundred Acre Wood.

Donald also wandered off to explore, looking around the trees. He heard a faint rustling, and darted his head over to look. The bushes in front of him moved slightly, and a single gold coin rolled out and onto the ground in front of him. Donald quacked inquisitively, gently reaching down and picking up the coin. He held it curiously in his wing up in the air, letting the sunlight reflect off of it, admiring how clean and shiny it was.

Then Donald heard another rustling, this time much louder. He turned his head, still holding the coin, to see five or six Armored Archer Heartless charging at him through the brush. Behind them was a tall, but obese bipedal grey wolf in a red and purple uniform, wielding a small sword. The wolf pointed his sword at Donald as he charged towards him.

"Another thief" he yelled in a surly, angry voice. "Get him!"

Donald quacked in fear.

* * *

Kairi walked up to Sora and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Where do you think the Keyhole is?" she asked.

Sora shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't even seen anyone around to help us."

Suddenly, Sora was startled but the loud rustling of foliage and panicked quacking. Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades and turned to face the sound. Donald came rushing out from between the trees, flailing his wings wildly as he ran. Before anyone could ask any questions, the Armored Archers and the fat wolf came charging after him.

"Get them all!" the wolf yelled.

The Archers circled Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy, all aiming their arrows at them. The wolf came barging in, swinging his sword.

"You're all under arrest for theft and high treason to the crown!" the wolf shouted.

"We're not thieves!" Goofy called. "We never stole anything!"

"You stole Prince John's gold!" the wolf hollered. "You're no doubt teamed up with that scoundrel Robin Hood!"

"Who?" Sora tried to ask.

"Arrest them!" the wolf shouted. The Heartless closed in. Sora swung Crown of Sun into an approaching one, knocking it back. He then cast a Fire spell to finish it off. Goofy threw his shield, sending the spinning disk into a row of the Heartless.

"You're in for it now!" the wolf shouted. He charged with his sword swinging. Kairi stepped between him and Sora, blocking his approaching swings. She then struck him directly on his stomach, throwing him back and making him grunt loudly. He straightened himself, a look of disgust and anger on his sharp face.

"You're in for it now!" he yelled, preparing to charge forward again. Kairi raised her Keyblade and took a defensive stance.

Suddenly a blur of green and red dropped from the trees in front of Kairi. The figure pulled a wooden bow out and an arrow, and pulled back and fired at the wolf. The arrow pierced the wolf's small hat, yanking it off his head. Before Kairi could even react, the figure shot two more arrows in approaching Heartless. Then it turned around.

Before her stood a tall, bipedal red fox in a green tunic and yellow hat. He had a friendly face and an excited grin. He extended a hand to Kairi.

"Excuse me, my dear lady," he said in a fair, noble voice, "but I suggest you and your friends come with me."

Kairi nodded slowly and nudged Sora, who took down another Armored Archer. Sora turned to see the fox waving them along before taking off into the trees. Sora and Kairi exchanged a look before following after him, Donald and Goofy right behind. The Heartless and the enraged wolf chased after them, but were quickly outran and left behind, much to the wolf's anger.

Once they stopped, everyone stopped to take a breath.

"Well," the fox said. "That was exciting, was it not?"

Sora walked up to the fox. "Thanks," he said. "Who was that?"

The fox shook his head. "The Sheriff of Nottingham. Real nasty fellow, isn't he?"

Kairi joined the conversation. "Why did he attack us?" she asked.

The fox shrugged. "Oh, he'll attack you for pretty much any reason. It just so happens that he was after me for… _taking_ a little gold from Prince John. You fine fellows just seemed to be caught in the chaos."

Sora nodded carefully. "Why did you rob him?"

The fox shook his head. "Tsk tsk tsk. What a naughty word. I never rob. I simply… _borrow_ from those who can afford it."

"Robin!" a deep voice called. The bushes rustled again and a giant brown bear in similar clothes to Robin lumbered out. "Oh good, you're alright!" he exclaimed. He glanced at the others. "Who are they?"

The fox looked over the group. "I actually don't believe we've been properly introduced." The fox removed his hat and bowed dramatically. "Robin Hood, at your service. And this is my best fellow, Little John."

"Robin Hood?" Goofy asked. "That Sheriff guy was lookin' for ya. That's why he attacked us; he thought we were with you."

"Makes sense," the bear mumbled.

Sora was cautious talking to a thief. "I'm Sora. This is Kairi, and that's Donald and Goofy."

"A pleasure!" Robin Hood remarked, placing his hat on his head.

Little John leaned down to his partner. "I stowed the gold next to the tree at camp. When do you want to take it to the orphanage?"

Kairi cocked her head. "You stole the gold to give it to an orphanage?"

Little John looked at her and nodded. "That's what we do. Rob…" He paused and looked at Robin, who waved a finger at him. "…_borrow_ from the rich to give to the poor. It's not like that no-good Prince John will share his wealth with the cold and hungry."

Sora placed a hand on his chin. "Prince John? That's who the Sheriff said he was working for… and was using Heartless."

"Is that what they're called?" Robin Hood asked. "They showed up not long ago. Nasty creatures. They've been crawling all over Nottingham."

Donald leaned in to Goofy. "That must be the name of this place," he whispered.

Sora nodded. "Well, we're looking for a way to get rid of them. There's a thing called a Keyhole, and if we find it, we can stop them. Do you know where that might be?"

Robin pondered. "No. But I know someone who might. Friar Tuck, a Holy man. A good man."

Donald stepped forward. "Well, let's go see him."

Robin shook his head. "I wish it were that simple. Friar Tuck is in jail."

Kairi looked concerned. "Why? What did he do?"

Little John huffed. "Absolutely nothing. He just stood up to Prince John when he was taxing his people out of house and home, and when he started throwing starving children in jail."  
Robin nodded. "He was trying to figure out what those 'Heartless' creatures were too. He may have some information if we can get him out."

Little John stepped in. "A jailbreak? But Robin, there's no way-"

Sora stepped forward, gradually beginning to trust the fox and bear a little more. Their thieving, as much as he hated to admit it, was for a good cause, and this Prince John not only sounded bad, but was using the Heartless, so he must be the true villain. "We'll help you," Sora said. "We want to stop the Heartless, and if this Friar Tuck can help us out in any way, we'll help you get him out."

Robin Hood smiled at Sora. "Good show, lad!" he said. "But we'll have to make a plan…"

* * *

Sora and his group, along with Robin Hood and Little John, decided in their planning to wait until the cover of night to execute their plan. Not only would they be freeing Friar Tuck, but all of the Nottingham residents that Prince John had imprisoned unjustly. Kairi, Donald, and Goofy held a lengthy conversation with Little John, and Robin climbed a tree to go scope out their route. After some time, Sora followed him.

Robin glanced over as Sora carefully walked the branch over to him. "How are you doing, lad?" he asked nicely.

"Fine," Sora said, sitting down and letting his legs dangle over the branch.

Robin Hood smiled. "You know, I've lived in Sherwood Forest for most of my life. I never thought I would be fighting monsters or saving people. But here I am."

Sora nodded. "That's what I used to think too."

Robin leaned back. "The feeling of surprise… surprise at yourself… it never really goes away, does it?"

Sora chuckled slightly. "I guess not. I've been doing this for a long time now, but every time I save someone, it still feels like the first time doing it. Even if parts of the job can be a little boring."

Robin Hood smiled. "You're humble. And that is a very good quality to have. You don't let the thrill of the fight or the pride of protection go to your head. And that is very noble."

Sora blushed slightly. "Thanks," he said.

Robin Hood pivoted around and leaned against the tree trunk. "Did I tell you I'm engaged?"

Sora leaned forward. "No, you didn't. Congratulations!"

Robin sighed. "The most beautiful maiden in the land. After all this, we'll be married. But I still wonder if I made the right choice asking for her hand."

Sora glanced at him. "Why? Don't you love her?"

Robin sat up. "Of course! More than anything! But she's a lady of class and quality. What life does she have to look forward to, running off with an outlaw in the forest? What do I have to offer her?"

Sora thought about it for a moment. He had not known Robin for very long, but from what he gathered, he formulated a reply.

"You told me that humility and nobility are good qualities. Now, I may not agree wholeheartedly with what you do, but you are humble and noble. I'm sure that's enough for her."

Robin leaned back again. "Perhaps you're right, lad. Your qualities seemed to have caught another fair lady's attention."

Sora blushed until his skin was almost the same shade as Robin's red fur. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Robin Hood chuckled. "Oh, I believe you do. And I believe she's caught your eye as well, lad."

Sora turned away. "It… it's not like that."

The fox smirked. "Keep telling yourself that, lad. But keep her close and keep her safe."

Sora cleared his throat and took a deep breath. Although still embarrassed, Sora decided to change the subject. "Robin?" he asked.

"Hmm?" the archer replied.

"Would you teach me a little archery?" Sora asked sheepishly. "I mean, I usually fight with my blade…"

Robin Hood sat up. He reached to the other side of the trunk and pulled a bow off of a branch. He tossed it to Sora, who clumsily caught it. The fox smiled.

"Let's get you some arrows," he said.

* * *

Sora sighed. The ground around the target was littered with missed shots, and a few arrows were dug into the edges of the circle.

Robin leaned down. "Remember to focus on where you want the arrow to land. When you swing your blade, you know where it's going to hit, right?"

"Right," Sora replied.

"Imagine the arrow like a tiny version of your sword. Imagine that target is a Heartless, and you're launching your blade right between its ugly eyes."

Sora closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes, inhaled, and lifted the bow and arrow up while pulling the bowstring back. Robin examined his posture.

"Keep your feet angled. Move your strength to your arms. Lock your eyes on the bullseye." Robin instructed. Sora obeyed.

Sora focuses on the center of the target. He took Robin's advice: he imagined it as throwing (or in this case, shooting) his Keyblade at a Heartless. He had thrown his blade many times, and he often hit his mark. Sora thought about what he did then, in the heat of battle… he concentrated on why he had to hit his targets, on what would happen if he did not. He thought about who counted on him to hit that target… Yen Sid, King Mickey, Donald, Goofy… Kairi…

Sora released the bowstring. Letting the arrow fly. The dart flew threw the air and planted itself firmly in the target's bullseye.

Robin leapt with excitement. "Alright! Way to go, lad!" Sora smiled with pride.

As they were celebrating, Little John emerged from the brush. "Robin?" he interrupted. "It's time to go."

Robin smiled at Sora as Sora returned the bow to him. "Let's go," he said.

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Robin Hood, and Little John hurried through the forest. It was not long before they exited and found themselves in the town square. Despite the dark night covering everything, the moonlight was bright enough to illuminate their path. It was very quiet.

As the posse hurried through the square, suddenly Armored Archers appeared in front of them, alongside Soldiers and chicken-like Cluckeroos.

"Egads!" Little John yelped, drawing a wooden staff out.

"We can't let these monsters slow us down!" Robin said, drawing his bow. "If we don't hurry, we'll be out of time!"

Kairi stepped forward. "Let us handle these guys!" she said, drawing Destiny's Embrace. A Cluckeroo charged at her, pecking the air and beating its black wings. Kairi jumped up and slammed her Keyblade onto the Heartless, destroying it. When a Soldier ran to her next, Goofy ran in and rammed it out of the way. Donald cast a Blizzard spell at the Armored Archers, and Sora threw his Keyblade at a small group of Soldiers, knocking every one to the ground. Robin Hood fired a series of arrows at the approaching Cluckeroos, and Little John batted away a Soldier with his staff.

One of the Cluckeroos began cawing loudly, then turned around. It visibly tensed up, then suddenly fired a black egg-like projectile from its behind. The large oval bounced on the cobblestone street towards them.

"Move!" Sora called, jumping out of the way. He, Kairi, and Donald jumped, while Goofy blocked. The egg exploded with a sizable blast of fire, hitting Robun and knocking him to the ground. Goofy rushed in and killed the Heartless.

"Robin Hood!" Donald quacked, casting a Cure spell on him. Robin shook his head and stood up, dusting the rubble and dirt off of him before tipping his cap to Donald.

While everyone was distracted, an Armored Archer pulled back its bow and released an arrow at Kairi. It had almost reached her when Sora jumped in and blocked it with Crown of Sun. He slid on the ground at the Archer, then hit it from below up into the air before slicing at it and defeating it. Little John downed his Heartless, and Robin planted one last arrow in a last Cluckeroo.  
"Come on!" Robin said, putting his bow away. "We haven't any more time to lose!"

Their footsteps echoed across the abandoned roads and vacant allies as they ran. The cottages were spaced far from each other, making the sound quieter, but linger longer. Robin led the way to the outskirts of the castle and across a drawbridge. The group then hid around one of the exterior walls.

Sora peeked his head out to see none other than the Sheriff of Nottingham sleeping in a chair in front of the jail door, a ring of keys under his hand.

"We'll need to get those keys," Little John whispered.

"No need," Sora said, smiling slightly.

Little John looked at him with a confused expression. "What do you mean? We need those to unlock the cell door and everyone's chains."

Kairi smiled and summoned Destiny's Embrace. She shimmied along the stone wall until she was on the other side, then rolled on the ground quietly closer to the door.

"What is she doin'?" Little John worried in a hushed yell.

"Just watch," Sora replied.

Kairi stopped a few yards away from the door, taking a knee so she was level with the lock, then pointed her Keyblade at the keyhole. The tip of the blade began to glow slightly, then a white beam blasted from it, accompanied by a twinkling sound like wind chimes. The beam entered the keyhole and made it glow the same white as the beam, then the sound of it unlocking was heard. The beam dissipated, and Kairi lowered her Keyblade. The Sheriff had not even stirred.

"Now how do you reckon she did that?" Robin Hood said, scratching behind one of his ears.

"I'll tell you later," Sora said.

Kairi tiptoed back over. "The door's unlocked now. What's the plan?"

Robin Hood pulled his bow back out. "Not only do we need to get everyone out, but we're also going to take back some of the gold Prince John stole from them. We should split into two groups: Little John, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy will go into the jail and free everyone. Sora and I will sneak up to Prince John's bedroom and take back the gold."

Sora nodded. "I think we can do that."

"Alright, then!" Donald quacked. "Let's go!"

Little John waved Donald and Goofy along, and the two followed. Robin and Sora turned to go the other way to scale the wall. Kairi looked over to Sora.

"Sora?" she said.

Sora turned around. "Yeah?"

Kairi cocked her head and smiled. "Be careful," she said.

Sora smiled back and activated Crown of Sun. "You too," Then he turned to follow Robin as Kairi hurried to catch up with the others.

Robin and Sora tiptoed along the length of the wall, ready to go over it when they were closer to Prince John's tower. As they made their way along, a Soldier suddenly appeared in front of them, rattling its armor and making a ruckus.

"Get rid of it!" Robin said as loudly as he dared.

Sora charged and batted it into the air, causing another bought of loud clanking and clicking. Sora then tackled it while running it through with his Keyblade, defeating it and causing it to disappear before it could hit the ground.

"Who goes there?" a gruff voice called.

"Get down!" Sora whispered. Robin ducked behind a bush, and Sora jumped behind a pillar jutting out from the wall.

A vulture, wearing dark garments and a helmet and wielding a crossbow hopped onto the wall, and scanned the area. His dark gaze hovered over both Robin and Sora's hiding places, but he did not spot them.

"Darn monsters again," the vulture grumbled, hopping down off of the wall. Sora breathed a sigh of relief as Robin emerged. He swiveled his red head around to make sure the coast was clear, then waved Sora along as they picked up their pace to the section of the wall they needed o be at.

Robin stopped at the section, and pulled a pair of arrows out of his quiver. "I can use these to climb," he whispered.

"Hold on a second," Sora whispered back. He glanced behind him and took as many steps back as he could before he reached the edge of the moat, exhaled, then sprinted directly at the wall. Just before he made contact, he leapt into the air and dug his shoes onto the stone, propelling himself up. He ran up the wall, and landed firmly on top. He then reached down to Robin.

"Grab my hand and I'll pull you up," he whispered.

Robin looked surprised, but smiled and shook his head. He returned the arrows to the quiver, then grabbed Sora's extended hand. Sora strained and pulled the fox up.

"Where to now?" Sora asked.

Robin motioned his head toward the tower. "Up there," he said.

* * *

Kairi, Little John, Donald, and Goofy made their way past the sleeping Sheriff and into the jail. Little John took the liberty of sneaking the keys away from the Sheriff to double their efficiency. Kairi was saddened by what she saw: dozens of dirty, hungry prisoners in chains. Many of them were children, crying softly or attempting to sleep. It hurt her Heart to see people oppressed like this; but she had no time to take in the misery these creatures were in, she had to free them.

As Little John began unlocking the shackles from some of the elderly, Kairi used Destiny's Embrace to unlock the chains around the children. They stared in amazement at the brilliant light show the Keyblade produced, then smiled and cried with happiness when the shackles fell off of their necks and feet. Due to the urgency of the mission Kairi could not stop to talk to any of them, but he knew they were thankful.

Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy went around, explaining to everyone what was going on. They reported that Robin Hood would be sending bags of gold their way, and they were to collect as many as they could carry and follow Little John out of the jail.

Kairi made her way through the dark and damp jail to a locked door. She used the Keyblade to unlock it, and saw a miserable-looking badger in brown robes with his hands and feet bound in shackles. He looked up at her with eyes full of sadness and confusion.

"Who… who are you?" he stuttered, his voice hoarse.

Kairi hurried over and began unlocking one of his shackles. "My name's Kairi," she said. "I'm with Robin Hood and Little John. We're going to get you out of here."

The badger smiled as tears of joy ran down his cheeks. "Bless you, my dear. It seems my prayers have been answered."

Kairi unlocked a shackle around his ankle. "Are you Friar Tuck?" she asked. He nodded his head as she moved to the next shackle around his foot. "We were wondering what you know about all of the dark monsters that have been coming around here. The Heartless."

Friar Tuck hung his heavy head. "Not much, I'm afraid. They started arriving after Prince John raised our taxes. I assumed they were demons, drawn to our fear and suffering."

Kairi nodded as she moved to one of the shackles around his wrist. "That's pretty spot-on," she said. "When they showed up, did you notice them gathered around a certain area, or heading in a certain direction?"

Friar Tuck did his best to shrug his exhausted shoulders. "They were mainly just around the castle. That horrible, wretched Prince John seemed to be drawing them like flies."

Kairi thought about it as she moved to the last shackle. "Or that's where the Keyhole is," she muttered to herself. The last shackle clicking open put her attention back on the friar.

The Holy man stood up slowly, massaging his sore wrists. His gaze traveled past Kairi, and he suddenly stepped back. "Speaking of those monsters…" he said worriedly.

Kairi spun around to see Armored Archers, Soldiers, and a large, muscular Invisible wielding its long sword emerge from the shadows of the cell. The Invisible thrust out its chest and twirled its blade to show its might.

"Stay behind me!" Kairi called, waving Friar Tuck behind her. She raised her Keyblade and prepared for attack.

* * *

Sora and Robin Hood scaled the hard side of the tower, silently looking down at the sleeping Sheriff, the various rhinoceros, wolf, and vulture guards, and the various Heartless clawing at the wall around the castle.

"I wonder why the Heartless want to get in here so badly," Sora whispered to himself. "Is it just due to the Darkness in Prince John's Heart?"

Robin helped Sora up to a balcony, and Sora pulled Robin up behind him. Sora heard a loud noise and looked towards it.

In the room connected to the balcony was a large bed, surrounded by dozens of bags. In the bed lay a scrawny-looking lion in white pajamas and a golden crown too large for his head. He was snuggled up with some of the bags and was snoring loudly. Sora could tell instantly that this was Prince John.

Robin Hood wasted no time. He reached into his quiver and pulled out an arrow. He looped a thin piece of rope around it and snuck into the room. Sora followed behind, and noticed a small cradle with a snake in it sleeping at the foot of the bed. Sora eyed the curious sight, but Robin looped the rope around one of the sturdy bedposts and then hurried over to the balcony. He drew the arrow back in his bow and fired it right into the jail. The arrow soared over the courtyard and through the barred window.

* * *

Kairi blocked the Armored Archer's arrow, but another one fired from behind. The arrow struck her in the shoulder before disappearing, making her grit her teeth and hiss in pain. She turned around and struck the Archer to the ground, defeating it. However, the Soldiers and Invisible were closing in. The Invisible charged forward, swinging its massive blade down at Kairi. She raised Destiny's Embrace just in time, blocking the swing. The two weapons clashed with a loud metallic clang, and the two began pressing on their blade to force the other back. The Invisible was too strong for Kairi to hold off for long, so she rolled out of the way and let the Invisible's sword drop to the ground.

A Soldier charged her, but Kairi caught it in an upwards slash that sent it flying right into the Invisible, knocking it back and destroying the Soldier. The Invisible regained its balance, then threw its sword into the air, caught it, and drove it into the ground. Its body vanished, and a ring of purple flames circled around Kairi. Kairi moved to take down a Soldier, but the flames followed her. They spun around her as she downed a Soldier, then suddenly closed in. Kairi lifted her Keybade to block, but was too late. The flames struck her, and she felt each of them burn at her skin as they struck. She yelped in pain and fell to her knees, wincing in pain. The Invisible reformed over its sword and pulled it out, then hovered over to attack.

Suddenly, Kairi felt the burning dissipate. She looked up to see three green bell-like flowers glowing above her. The Invisible raised its sword, but was suddenly interrupted by a blow to the back of its head. It whirled around, and Kairi stood up to see Donald and Goofy in the cell door. Goofy caught his shield and charged, ramming the Soldiers as he made his way to the Invisible. Donald batted away an Armored Archer and ran in, casting Fire spells at the Invisible.

The Invisible was hit by the fire, doubling back with each impact. It swung its sword at Goofy, who blocked it and proceeded to ram the Heartless into the wall. The Invisible staggered and fell, disappearing and releasing the captive Heart. Goofy and Donald lowered their weapons and approached Kairi and Friar Tuck.

"Thank you," Kairi said.

Goofy chuckled. "You didn't think we wouldn't notice our friend was taking too long, did ya?"

Meanwhile, Little John retrieved Robin's arrow. He looped it around one of the bars in the window, then pulled out his own bow and fired it back.

* * *

Sora cautiously watched the sleeping villains, careful not to wake them. He heard a whooshing noise, and looked up to see the arrow Robin had shot return back and plant itself in the wall. Prince John stirred in bed, but remained asleep.

As Robin began tying the rope to the other end, he gasped suddenly. Sora hurried over to see a Shadow eying them, twitching. Sora struck it with his Keyblade, but it did not die. The sound of the impact was louder than either Robin or Sora were expecting, and both Prince John and the snake stirred in their respective beds. Sora quickly finished the Heartless off, then turned to see if the lion had awoken. Prince John rolled over, then began calling out in his sleep.

"Mother!" he said, kicking slightly. He put his thumb in his mouth and began loudly sucking. Sora looked at Robin with a disgusted and inquisitive face, and Robin simply put on a pitying expression. He then reached down and grabbed a bag of money, tied it to the rope, and tugged once. The one on the other end began pulling the rope in a pulley system, bringing the bag towards them. Robin tied another on, and Sora took to gathering bags from the other side of the bed to hand to Robin.

* * *

Little John began pulling in the rope, which had bags of gold tied to it. He untied each one and handed it to a former prisoner. Kairi grabbed two in one of her hands, then began leading the escapees out. She waved them along silently, leading them outside of the jail, past the still sleeping Sheriff, and into the courtyard. She instructed those who could to head across the drawbridge and head to Sherwood Forest, and those who were too weak or had family to wait for to get onto a cart that Little John had prepared.

Kairi handed her two bags off to a small rabbit child, and continued to help people out. She glanced up at the bags emerging from the tower, hoping Sora and Robin were staying safe.

The process went swiftly and quietly. Sora handed Robin the last two bags he could find, and Robin sent them down. Sora scanned the room for more bags, then gave Robin a thumbs-up. He slowly walked over and positioned himself below the rope, ready to make his escape.

"Wait!" Robin said in a hushed whisper. Sora watched as the fox walked over to Prince John's bed and began reaching down to the bag the lion was holding. Sora froze, and hoped that this would work.

Robin slowly pulled the bag out of Prince John's grip. Prince John whimpered loudly, but remained asleep and sucking on his thumb. Sora heard the clock tower chime, and looked out to see the sky changing color. Dawn was approaching.

Robin pulled the bag away completely. Prince John began tossing and kicking, but remained in a deep sleep. Robin tied off the last bag, then the two of them grabbed onto the rope and prepared to climb away, leaving Prince John to fuss and fumble.

However, one of Prince John's feet found itself square in the snake's face. The snake woke with a start, but neither Robin or Sora noticed. The snake looked at the prince annoyed, then looked around the room and saw Robin and Sora with their backs turned. The snake shrugged and closed his eyes again before realizing what was going on.

"Wait!" the snake shouted. He extended out and bit onto one of the bags, tearing it and pulling him along with it. He quickly reached out and wrapped his coil around Prince John's foot, pulling him and the entire bed along. Prince John woke screaming in fear, confused and concerned that his bed was sliding towards the balcony.

"Guards! Guards!" Prince John hollered in a pitchy, prissy scream. "My gold!"

The bed crashed into the balcony, forcing the snake to release his grip and sending Prince John tumbling. But it was too late. The guards had seen them.

Robin and Sora began climbing quicker across the rope as wolves began firing arrows at them. Sora activated his Keyblade and batted a few away, while Robin dodged each arrow.

The enraged prince leapt to his feet. "Heartless!" he cried. "Rally the Heartless!"

Almost as soon as he had spoken, Armored Archers appeared below them and joined in the archery volley. A Red Nocturne materialized and floated towards them, but Sora hit it away.

Prince John slammed his fists down on the balcony before looking down and seeing prisoners leaving the jail.

* * *

"Uh-oh," Kairi thought.

There had been some commotion at the tower, and now they were shooting arrows at Sora and Robin! Kairi was about to go face some of the Heartless when she heard a prissy voice shout from the tower.

"Heartless! Guards! Stop them! They're getting away with my gold!" She looked up to see a lion pointing at her.

Before she knew it, massive rhino guards turned the corner, brandishing spears and halberds. They charged at Kairi, who knew that even if she blocked, it was still going to hurt when one of those rammed her. Instead, she dove out of the way, allowing the brutish guards to run right past her and into the jail. However, she was not out of danger yet.

The commotion had woken up the Sheriff, who pulled out his sword upon the rude awakening. He set his sights on Kairi, and ran up to her while she was not facing him, ready to strike.

"Kairi!" Donald quacked, pushing her out of the way. Kairi felt Donald tackle into her, shoving her hard onto the ground. The Sheriff's blade skimmed Donald's tail feathers, painfully cutting a few off. Donald quacked with pain and anger, and turned to face the Sheriff. He cast a Blizzard spell in the wolf's gut, knocking him back against the wall.

Kairi and Goofy ran with the prisoners, with Donald waddling behind. The archers turned their attention from Sora and Robin to them and started firing at the escapees, but Goofy shielded them from the arrows. Goofy helped the last prisoner, an elderly owl, onto the cart.

Robin and Sora continued to make their way across the rope until it was safe to drop. Sora released the rope and fell painlessly to the ground. He and Robin began running with the others.

"That's all of them!" Robin called to Little John.

Little John rushed forward and grabbed the cart. He began sprinting as fast as he could, pulling the cart behind him as Goofy, Donald, Friar Tuck, and Kairi pushed it along.

Unbeknownst to them, the Sheriff had recovered and made his way over to the gate wench. He swung his sword, and the iron gate fell. Little John, the cart, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy cleared the exit in time, but the gate fell right in front of Sora and Robin.

"Sora!" Kairi said, skidding to a a halt and turning back to the gate.

"Go!" Sora called. "Don't worry about us! We'll make it out!"

Kairi paused, but reluctantly obeyed and ran after the group.

The Sheriff laughed easily as he rushed the gate. "We got 'em now!" he called to the guards.

The Heartless and the rhinos charged at Sora and Robin. Robin fired a string of arrows into the Heartless, and Sora dodged the rhinos. He jumped up and grabbed onto one's horn before striking it right between the eyes and sending it to the ground. Another rhino swung at him with its halberd, and Sora fought back with his Keyblade. Their weapons clashed, but Sora disarmed the rhino and used a Thunder spell to knock the guard down.

"Climb!" Robin yelled, and began scaling the gate. Sora jumped up and began climbing. Armored Archers began shooting arrows at him, but he used a Reflect spell to send the projectiles back at them. Robin and Sora climbed up the wall, where arrowmen began shooting at them.

"Run!" Sora shouted, turning the opposite direction and running away from the archers. Robin followed, jumping over the volley of projectiles. Sora knew that if they did not get out of the line of fire quickly, one of the arrows was sure to hit its mark. Sora scanned for an escape, and saw an open window that was a long jump away.

"Robin!" Sora called. "The window!" He pointed at the exit, then jumped. He curled up midair to make sure he would fit. If not, he would be hitting stone sooner than he wanted to. Fortunately, he passed through and rolled unharmed on the castle floor. Robin followed with a similar maneuver.

"Quickly!" Robin shouted, waving Sora along. Sora followed him up a flight of steep stairs, no doubt headed for the tower. There, they would be able to jump to safety.

As Sora ran, he noticed his Keyblade begin to glow. He looked to his left and saw the glowing outline of a Keyhole on one of the regal tapestries.

"Hold on!" Sora said, stopping in his tracks. Robin did the same.

"What is it?" the fox asked.

Sora quickly raised his Keyblade at the outline, and a beam shot out to it. The Keyhole glowed, and a locking sound was heard.

Sora lowered his Keyblade. "That should slow the Heartless down," he said.

Robin had been watching the display, and turned his attention back to Sora. Suddenly, he ran at Sora and pulled on him.

"Look out!" he shouted.

Sora had not even noticed the Sheriff of Nottingham approach and try and cut him down with his sword. Sora prepared for battle as Robin Hood drew his bow. The Sheriff growled angrily, and slashed at Sora. Sora raised his blade to meet the Sheriff's, and the two began sword fighting. Robin ran to the side and tried to fix a shot on the Sheriff. However, in a sudden move, the Sheriff broke off his duel with Sora and slashed at Robin, cutting through his bow and leaving it a splintered mess on the floor.

He swung at Robin again, but Sora ran up and drop kicked the wolf before the blade could fall. Sora jumped back up and turned to Robin.

"Go! Run!" he called. Robin hesitated, but nodded and ran up the next flight of stairs. The Sheriff got back up, and grabbed a torch off the wall. Sora turned to face him, then suddenly leaned back to avoid the fire inches from his face. The Sheriff slashed and slammed the flaming wood down at Sora, but Sora fought back and prevented each blow from landing. The Sheriff then began swinging to the left. Sora raised his Keyblade to block, only for the Sheriff to suddenly change direction and go right, singing Sora's arm.

Sora yelped and jumped back, patting away the fire on his clothes. Due to their magic nature they had been unharmed, but his skin still tingled painfully.

"You think you're clever, kid?" the Sheriff sneered. "When I'm done with you, Sir Hiss will have you in a hangman's noose."

"Not gonna happen!" Sora said, swinging at the Sheriff. The Sheriff blocked, and embers from the torch fell from the wood and onto the rug below them, catching it on fire. Sora backed up, then grabbed a tapestry on the wall and pulled it down on the wolf. The cloth burst into flames upon contact, and the Sheriff rushed to throw it off. It landed on a chair, which began burning as well. Before long, the room was filling with smoke and flame.

Sora decided now would be a good time to leave. He turned and ran where Robin had gone. The Sheriff began to give chase, but a wave of fire cut him off. Sora ran up the stairs, the fire following close behind. He breathed heavily as he sprinted as fast as he could until there were not more stairs. Robin was there, waiting.

"Quick!" Robin called. "Onto the roof!"

He climbed out an ajar window, and Sora followed. The two struggled to keep their footing on the slippery tile, but climbed up onto the roof of the tower. Both grabbed on tight to the spire, holding on as the flames continued to rise.

Price John stormed out of an adjacent tower, pointing at them angrily. "Shoot them!" he yelled.

Sora and Robin looked at each other, worried. They were running out of options.

"Jump!" Robin shouted. The two released their grips on the spire and dove into the moat below.

"Kill them!" Prince John shouted. "Kill them!"

Wolf archers rushed the moat, firing arrows into it.

* * *

The cart stopped on the outskirts of Sherwood Forest, where everyone began disembarking. As soon as she knew they had reached their destination, Kairi turned and ran back to the castle.

"Kairi!" Donald yelled after her. "Where are you going?"

"To help Sora!" she shouted back, sprinting back. Donald and Goofy glanced at each other, then ran after her. Little John followed.

The four of them reached a grove of trees on the edge of the moat. The first thing Kairi noticed was what looked like fire engulfing one of the towers. She ran up to get a look, and gasped at what she saw.

Sora and Robin Hood were clinging to the top of the flaming tower, quickly running out of room.

"Shoot them!" she heard Prince John cry.

She, Donald, Goofy, and Little John watched in fear and alarm, anxiously waiting for what would happen. Then they jumped, and plummeted into the moat.

"Kill them! Kill them!"

Kairi gasped when she saw archers rush the moat and begin firing arrows. She raised her Keyblade at them.

"Force!" she yelled.

A purple orb of gravitational magic enveloped the archers, bursting and knocking them all to the ground. Kairi then immediately turned her attention back to the moat. She did not see any sign of Sora.

Sora swam through the moat, holding his breath as Robin swam alongside him. Arrows ripped through the water around them, but suddenly stopped. Sora did not stop to wonder why. The two paddled to the other side, only emerging from the water when they reached the shore. Sora breached first, inhaling sharply. Robin followed.

"Sora!" Kairi shouted. Sora turned to see Kairi running towards him. Without warning, she jumped in the water with him, placing her hands on his shoulders and panting heavily.

"Don't do that to me!" she said. "You had me worried sick!"

Sora chuckled and put his hand on her arm, catching his breath. "Sorry,"

Little John leapt for joy when he saw Robin emerge, and Donald and Goofy shared their excitement; However, Donald and Goofy had been on more adventures with Sora than Kairi or Little John, and they knew that a jump like that would not have bothered Sora in the least.

Robin Hood laughed and turned to face the castle. He cupped his hands around his mouth.

"A pox on the phony king! Oo-De-Lally! Oo-De-Lally!" he called to his enemy.

Prince John pounded his fists on the stone in a tantrum. "No, no, no! It's so miserably unfair!" he pouted.

Sir Hiss scoffed. "I tried to tell you, but no no no, you wouldn't listen. And now just look what you've done to your mother's castle!"

Prince John had not even realized that his abode was burning. He shrieked in fear and anger, then decided to take it out on Hiss. He grabbed a wooden stick and began swinging it at the snake's head. Hiss yelped and slithered away madly as the prince gave chase.

"Hold still, you cowardly cobra!" Prince John screamed as he chased Sir Hiss down. "You procrastinating python! Oh no no no no! Aggravating asp! You eel in snake's clothing!"

He chased Sir Hiss back into the burning castle, where Hiss called out for help.

"Help! He's gone stark raving mad!"

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Robin Hood, and Little John met back with the escapees in Sherwood Forest. Most of them were cheering and celebrating their victory.

"So you actually found and sealed the Keyhole?" Goofy questioned.

Sora nodded. "Yep. It was a good thing I did it when I did, too, or else we wouldn't have been able to."

Robin Hood walked up and slapped Sora on the back. "That was magnificent, lad! Well done!"

Sora blushed. "Thanks,"

Friar Tuck walked over. "Indeed extraordinary," he said, extending his hand. Sora shook it, then the friar turned it to Kairi. She shook it as well.

Friar Tuck glanced around, then leaned in. "Look," he whispered. "I won't pretend to know what those monsters were, but whatever you did will make it so we can handle them." He stood up straight. "I'm glad you came. There's something I found recently, and I feel like I'm supposed to give it to you." Friar Tuck then reached into a pocket on his robe and pulled out a small charm with a gemstone in it. "I don't know what it is or what the markings mean, but you should have it. Maybe it will help you." He handed it to Sora.

Sora knew exactly what it was. It was a Summon Charm, with the image of some sort of red automobile on it. As with all of the Summon Charms he had collected over the years, Sora immediately felt a connection with the individual connected to the charm. He saw that this individual was wild and unpredictable, as well as friendly and obsessed with… something, Sora could not quite make it out. He figured that, if he ever needed him, Sora could summon him with this Charm.

Robin Hood placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "Well done," he said. He looked at Kairi, Donald, and Goofy. "Well done all of you. While I assume your business is done here, I'd like to give you something too." He reached into his quiver and pulled out an arrow, the same arrow Sora had shot earlier. Robin untied the arrowhead from it, and handed it to Sora.

"A little something to remember us by!" he cheered.

Sora smiled. "Thanks, Robin Hood," he said. "And congratulations again on your engagement." He turned and waved, with Robin Hood waving back. Kairi, Donald, and Goofy walked with him.

"He's engaged?" Kairi asked.

Sora nodded. As they walked, he activated Crown of Sun. He took a small chain out of his pocket and clipped it to the arrowhead, then swapped it with Kuzco's carving. The Keyblade changed in his hand, now appearing to be made from young green wood decorated with feathers. The bit had changed from one to three, all of them appearing like arrows piercing through the wood. The Crown of Sun had changed to Bullseye.

Sora extended the llama carving to Kairi. "Here," he offered.

Kairi raised her hand. "No thanks. I'm still getting used to Destiny's Embrace."

"Are you sure?" Sora asked.

Kairi nodded, but took the charm as she did. "I'll hold onto it. If I want to put it on, I will."

Sora nodded. He put his hands behind his head as the sunlight began to flood the trees.

"Oo-De-Lally," he said.


	5. Villains of a Sort

Maleficent hated this place.

It seemed like all she was getting nowadays were crummy replacements. Her, the Mistress of all Evil! First she had lost Hollow Bastion to that blasted Restoration Committee, then her coveted Castle that Never Was was destroyed after the fall of Xemnas. Now she was forced to sneak back into the crumbling, decrepit Villain's Vale. It infuriated her to no end. Still, the best place to plot was right under her enemies noses, and no one would have expected one as prideful as herself to move back in to such a ruined place. Not even herself.

Still, as much as she wanted a new, more glamorous, more sophisticated hideout, there were other matters to attend to. She walked slowly up to the table, her midnight robes flowing behind her. The Council would be having its first meeting in ages. She raised her horned head to look out upon the attendees.

Pete stood forebodingly on the left side of the table, his massive gloved hands gripping the edge. In the center stood Hades, his blue, flaming hair illuminating the room. On the right stood Captain Hook, who was twisting his namesake in its socket, admiring its shine.

Maleficent's face scrunched up in anger and disapproval. "What is this?" she asked, venom dripping from her words. "Where is everyone else?"

Hades and Captain Hook glanced at each other, and Pete was the one brave enough to step forward.

"This is it, Maleficent," he said in his gruff, low voice. "Everyone else is gone. Jafar's trapped in his lamp in Agrabah, and Ursula, Oogie Boogie, Barbossa, and Scar are all gone thanks to the Keyblade brat."

Maleficent tightened her fist around her staff. Was this really all that was left? Moreover, were her affiliates really that incompetent? She knew that he, too, had fallen once to Sora's Keyblade, but was far too proud to admit any form of weakness.

"Then it will have to make do," she said, attempting to regain her composure. "We must discuss the matters of the Heartless."

Captain Hook scoffed slightly. "With all due respect, ma'am," he said in his posh tone, "there's little more we can do. Those blasted Keyblade wielders are watching the Darkness' every move, no doubt including ours."

Maleficent stood firm. "That is just it. Darkness grows in places formerly unknown. The Heartless expand to new worlds. With Dark power growing, we may yet have our chance to take control of them and amass a terrible army. Once we do, we will use them to capture the Princesses of Light as we did before, and finally take Kingdom Hearts!"

"Uh, yeah, well..." the fast-talking lord of the dead interjected. "Remember, one of those Princesses _is_ a Keyblade wielder now. And even if we were to do this, why would it work out any differently than it did before?"

Maleficent glared at him, but did not immediately answer. She opened her mouth to speak, when another voice interrupted her.

"You disappoint, Maleficent."

Every villain in the room knew that voice. It was a dark, cackling voice that echoed even without the aid of the massive room and empty halls. Pete and Hook froze, and Hades took a startled step back.

Maleficent's eyes were wide with alarm. Slowly she turned.

"It's you!" she exclaimed.

None of the others had ever seen Maleficent afraid before. It was jarring. But she had good reason.

"You're back!" Maleficent gasped. "How did you escape?"

"Do not trifle me with pointless questions!" the figure snarled. It stepped towards the table. "So, this is what has become of my Council in my absence? Weakness? Shortsightedness? Incompetence?" The figure lowered its hooded head. "You all disappoint me."

Pete came to a realization. "W-wait a second!" he stuttered. "You're the reason the Darkness has grown!"

"Obviously," the figure replied back. "I have spread the Heartless into new territory. I manipulate them to carry out my goal." The figure paused. "Now that I have returned, I command you once again. And I have but one task for all of you."

* * *

Yen Sid studied the book in front of him closely. It was a spellbook of sorts, containing ancient magic of Light and Darkness. Magic that even he had not used for a great many years. His eyes scanned the information, looking for something that could make sense of what he was seeing.

The Darkness was still growing. More worrying still, he had seen it in places outside of where he had sent Sora and Kairi. He noticed whenever Sora sealed a Keyhole, but it did not seem to be helping. There was something he was not seeing, and it felt uncomfortably familiar.

King Mickey placed another book, a journal, on the desk. "Any luck?" he asked his Master.

Yen Sid sighed and shook his head slowly. "I just know that it began near where I sent Sora and Kairi. But there's nothing out there except..." his words trailed off and he widened his eyes in alarm.

King Mickey raised his hands. "Hold on, now," he said, attempting to calm the wizard. "He's gone, remember? There's no way he could be back."

Yen Sid remained fearful. "Unfortunately, that's what we thought about Xehanort for a time as well. We need to be doubly sure. Quickly, see if you can get into contact with the Guardian." The king nodded and hurried out of the room.

With no one around to see him, Yen Sid began breathing heavily. He hoped that what he was feeling was anything but what he thought it was. He quickly stood and strode over to the bookshelf. With a shaking hand, he reached up and grabbed a black book and pulled it out. It was as dark as midnight with a gold trim, and had a blood-red silk bookmark peeking from the top. Yen Sid opened the the page marked, and was greeted by an illustration of a metal coffin with chains wrapped around it.


	6. Gravity Falls

"Hey Kairi!" Sora called as they were boarding the Gummi Ship. Kairi turned her head to look at him. "You wanna fly this time?"

Kairi looked surprised. "Me? Do you think I can do it?"

Sora laughed. "Sure, there's nothing to it! Besides, Donald and I will be here to help you out."

Kairi smiled and shrugged. "Sure, I guess I'll give it a try," she said.

Sora patted her on the back as they boarded. "Don't worry, it'll be a piece of cake."

* * *

"Turn! Turn!" Donald quacked. Kairi twisted thew controls, just barely dodging.

"You're doing great, Kairi!" Sora called as he fired the weapons. "Just keep moving!"

Kairi grunted as she pulled back on the controls, tilting up to dodge the incoming projectile. She grunted in frustration as she steadied the ship out.

Sora and Donald had been instructing Kairi what to do, even though she was a natural at the controls. But their leisurely flight to the next world took a turn when Heartless ships confronted them on the same path.

Now Kairi was doing her best to maneuver the Gummi ship through a hail of laser fire and kamikaze bombers, as well as various asteroids and debris littered about. Sora and Donald had to take control of the weapons systems while Goofy managed the shield, all of them working together to make sure they were not destroyed.

Kairi swerved to avoid a blocky ship as it zoomed to ram them barely missing it. Sora opened fire on some of the ships firing rockets at them, destroying a few and exploding a rocket right after it was launched. However, one rocket escaped the barrage of fire and flew right into the ship. Everyone jolted as the Gummi ship shook from the explosive impact.

"Goofy, how's the shield look?" Sora called.

"We're okay for now," Goofy called back. "But a few more o' those will send us to critical."

Donald fired a pulse at the shops in front of them, blowing a hole in the defenses that Kairi was able to weave through.

"There's something big up there!" Kairi said. "It's not another Heartless, is it?"

Sora squinted to look at it. It was an orb, half-covered in green and dotted with browns and beiges. As they got closer, he realizes that the green was a wooded area of trees, and the browns and beiges were small houses, shacks, and buildings. One one part was a canyon in an odd shape, with two angled cliffs over it. Sora thought he even saw a large rectangular billboard.

"No, that's the next world!" Sora yelled. "If we can get through the rest of these Heartless, we can land there!"

The ship shook again.

"Three-fourths of shield left!" Goofy warned.

Sora shot down another Heartless ship. "Kairi, do you think you can get through?"

Kairi dodged a rocket. "If you can clear a hole for me like you did just a bit ago, then I can get through and bypass the rest of them."

Sora nodded. "Donald, can you do another pulse?"

"Not enough power!" Donald screamed.

Sora winced in frustration as he began firing ahead, hoping to clear a path for Kairi to get through.

Just then, a shadow loomed over the other Heartless ships. Sora and Kairi looked up to see a massive, crab-like Heartless with gatling gun-like claws and a giant Heartless emblem on its underside emerge. It began firing its guns at the ship, and Kairi nearly broke the controls trying to dodge. Even though she managed to avoid most of the fire, stray shots connected.

"We're at half shield!" Goofy yelled.

Sora turned his blaster on the giant Heartless, but Donald turned it back.

"Don't worry about it!" Donald shrieked. "Just clear a path and we can escape it!"

Sora nodded quickly. Donald was right, he had to stay focused on the escape. He turned the blaster down and fired at the same time as one of the rocket ships, exploding the rocket and creating a large explosion that engulfed several ships. When the smoke and debris cleared, there was a sizable gap in the Heartless' ranks.

"There!" Donald yelled, leaning on his controls and pointing at the gap. Kairi hit the thrusters as hard as she could, racing towards the hole. A barrage of fire came from the giant Heartless, striking the ship.

"Shield's at critical!" Goofy hollered.

Sora kept the firing button held down as the ship blasted through the gap and past the Heartless. Kairi kept the thrusters active as they approached the world, ensuring no Heartless ships caught up with them.

The Gummi ship came roaring through the clouds. Kairi released the thrusters and hit the reverse thrusters, slowing them down as they approached the ground. The ship flew right through the odd canyon and over the trees. Kairi pulled back on the controls, just barely slowing them down enough when she touched the ship down. The landing was bumpy to say the least, but the Gummi ship soon screeched to a stop and settled among the tall trees.

Kairi, Sora, Donald, and Goofy all simultaneously let out a sigh of relief and slumped into their chairs. The alarm for the shield was still blaring until Goofy weakly reached up and shut it off.

"Sora?" Kairi said, panting.

"Yeah?" Sora replied, equally as out of breath.

"You're flying next time," she said in between breaths.

* * *

Upon disembarking, Sora began to see up-close the beautiful scenery that he had seen from the ship. The entire area seemed to be outlined with cliffs and mountains, and included waterfalls, rivers, lakes, and lots and lots of pine trees. A large water tower loomed in the distance.

"Where to?" Sora asked.

Goofy shrugged. "Let's see if we can find anybody. Maybe they'll be able to tell us where we might find the Keyhole."

The others nodded in agreement, then began their trek through the woods. There was no path to guide them, so Sora just walked towards where he thought he saw civilization. The air was filled with the sound of chirping birds, and the sun was warm. The ground beneath their feet was rich and wet, and there seemed to be something sparkling in the air.

Then, among the tweeting birds, Sora heard another sound: what sounded like a small child giggling. Kairi heard it as well, as both she and Sora stopped and turned their heads to look in the direction the sound came from. Sora gestured the others along, and the four soon came to a clearing. On the other side of the large area was an impressive two-story house with a massive sign that read "Mystery Shack". Crouched beneath a totem pole in the front yard was a pale boy. He was a short, stubby child with massive white hair and wearing a baby blue suit. He was admittedly adorable, but his expression was one of mischief and evil.

"Hee hee hee hee!" the boy chuckled with a strong accent. "Now, Pines, we'll see who's the more powerful one here! I've got Heartless! What've you got?"

Sora decided to give the kid a scare. He silently walked right up behind him. "Heartless?" he suddenly and loudly questioned. The boy screamed a cowardly scream and jumped a mile high as he spun around.

"Oh my!" he said frantically. "You scared the dickens out of lil' ol' me!" He smiled with a sweet face. "My name's Lil' Gideon. What's yours?"

Sora glared at him. "We heard you talking about the Heartless. What do you know about them?"

The boy chuckled nervously and glanced around. "What?" he said awkwardly. "Heartless? I don't know what you're talking about."

Kairi stepped forward and put her hands on her hips. Lil' Gideon grinned up at her.

"Gosh, you're pretty," he said, his cheeks puffed and his voice pitched up.

"Flattery will get you nowhere," Kairi said as she activated Destiny's Embrace. "Answer the question," she huffed, with Donald and Goofy stepping up behind her. Sora activated Bullseye. Lil' Gideon stepped back, still smiling worriedly.

"I…" Lil' Gideon started, taking another step back. "Well, y-you see…"

Before he could finish, a Shadow rose from the ground between them. Gideon took a large jump back as Small Squealers, Hook Bats, and more Shadows appeared. Lil' Gideon took advantage of the opportunity and turned and ran.

Sora tried to run after him, but a Hook Bat swooped in front of him. Sora took to the air and executed a flurry of slashing attacks on the Heartless, sending it pummeling into the totem pole. Goofy began his whirlwind attack, spinning rapidly while striking all the Small Squealers in the vicinity.

"Take that!" Donald yelled, casting a Thunder spell on a huddle of Shadows.

Kairi attacked from below, slashing and striking at the Heartless' feet and hitting them up into the air. A Small Squealer jumped at her, but was repelled back.

"Kairi!" Sora said, casting an Areo spell. A globe of swirling, sharp winds encircled Kairi, propelling her attacker back. Kairi gave Sora a thumbs-up as thanks, then rammed a Shadow with her new shield.

Sora grabbed one of the Hook Bats and grappled it. As the Heartless flailed, Sora swung from it, striking the other Heartless around him before throwing the Hook Bat to the ground and defeating it.

Donald quacked and cast a Gravity spell, enveloping the area in the orb of energy. When it burst, the shrieks of the Small Squealers could be heard as all the Heartless were destroyed.

Donald looked around. "Now where did he get to?"

* * *

Lil' Gideon huffed and puffed as he ran. His body was not in proper shape to be doing this level of exercise. He glanced back only once to see the group fighting off the small group of Heartless he had managed to call forth. It was pathetic, really.

Lil' Gideon ducked into the trees and hid in a small grove. He panted heavily and held his gut before stamping his foot on the ground.

"Oh, tarnation!" he yelled in between pants. "Who are they, now?!"

"Geez, relax," a smooth, arrogant voice said. Lil' Gideon snapped his angry head over to see a familiar figure leaned up against a tree, shrouded by shadows.

Lil' Gideon stomped up to him. "You told me that I could have an army of Heartless at my disposal! But all I got were little pip-squeak ones! You lied to me, Hades!"

The Lord of the Dead poked his elongated grey face from the shadows and barred his sharp teeth. The blue flames that made up his hair arced as the black mists at his feet swirled higher.

"Oh, pa-lese!" the fast-talking god said, rolling his eyes. "Everything you needed is in that book I gave you."

Lil' Gideon reached into his suit and pulled out a dusty red book. On the cover was a picture of a golden handprint with six fingers. The number "2" was written in black on the handprint. Gideon shook the journal.

"This didn't say anything about warriors with giant keys in it! Care to fill me in on who they are, Hades?"

Hades' expression changed to anger as his flames changed to a dark red. "Who did you say was here?"

Gideon took a step back. "Two other kids, with giant keys. And they had two others with them."

Hades clenched his teeth together and curled his long fingers up as his flames rose ever higher. He growled in rage as his hands formed fists. "You're telling me that those… bozos… are here? I am here on a very important mission that I cannot fail, and the few… schlemiels… who can louse it up... are waltzing around… **_in the woods?!_**"

With the final word, Hades exploded. Literally. Pillars of flame blasted off from his arms, body, and head, forcing Gideon to duck to avoid certain doom. The entire area was illuminated for a brief moment. When it was over, Hades simply stood there seething among the burned-down smoldering trees.

"So…" Lil' Gideon stuttered fearfully, "I'm guessing that they're bad news."

Hades put a hand on his chin and thought for a moment as he tried to calm down. If Keyblade wielders were here, especially if one was the person he thought it was, it would mean trouble. Hades usually would not have minded, but they had bested him time and time again, and this time he could not risk failing. If he returned back empty-handed, there were sure to be consequences. Serious consequences. Consequences that worried even the god of death.

Hades turned to Lil' Gideon. "Our deal is still on, right?" he said, finally regaining his composure.

Lil' Gideon nodded a weak nod. "Uh-huh. You give me this journal and the Heartless, I use them to find the item you're looking for in the Mystery Shack."

Hades lowered his hand. "We need to quicken our schedule if those brats are here. You can't waste time looking through the whole shack for it. We need to read the old coot's mind and see if he has it or not, and where it's located if he does."

Lil' Gideon raised an eyebrow. "How do I do that?"

Hades smiled slightly. "You don't have to. But that journal tells you who can."

* * *

Sora walked up to the house, peering around hoping to catch a glimpse of Lil' Gideon.

"I don't see him," Sora reported.

"Neither do I," Kairi added. "He must be long gone by now."

"I wonder what he knows about the Heartless," Goofy pondered, "and if he also knows anything about the Keyhole."

"That's why we have to find him," Sora said, crossing him arms in frustration.

They all were quiet for a moment, then Donald peered up.

"Uh-oh," he quacked. He pointed up.

Sora turned and looked to see a Darkball floating up near the second story of the house. It swayed indecisively for a moment, then drifted through an open window.

"I guess Lil' Gideon will have to wait," Kairi said. She jogged over to below the window. She waved Sora over. "Mind giving me a boost?" she asked.

Sora nodded and hurried over to her. He stood with his knees bent below the window, holding Bullseye above his head. Kairi took a few steps back, then sprinted at Sora. She jumped at the last moment up onto Sora's Keyblade, and Sora extended his arms and legs to push her up, where she swiftly dismounted and hopped into the window.

Sora took a few steps back, then ran at the wall. He changed his position and began running up it, but felt him running out of momentum. With a quick motion he grabbed the window ledge, hanging there for a second, then pulled himself inside.

Sora found himself in a dark room filled with papers and a safe in the corner. Kairi was scanning the room.

"Where'd it go?" Sora asked.

"I'm not sure…" Kairi replied.

Suddenly they both heard what sounded like a boy screaming from a room nearby.

"Ahh!" he yelled. "What is that?!"

"It's an evil balloon!" a girl's voice said.

"Come on!" Kairi said. Sora ran alongside her as they burst from the room and ran down the hall to where the sound was coming from. Sora was the first to burst through the door, and found himself in a small triangular room. One side was covered in books, papers, survival equipment, backpacks, and a bulletin board with photographs and strings tangled all over it. On the other side were posters of hearts and unicorns, flowers, stuffed animals, and a mirror. Backed up against the wall were a young boy and a young girl. The boy wore a navy jacket and a blue-and-white hat with a pine tree on it. The girl wore a bright pink sweater with a picture of a shooting star, a purple skirt, and a pink headband. They looked very similar to one another, complete with same-color hair and nearly identical height. The boy was holding a book with a red cover and the gold image of a handprint in front of him like a shield and the girl was holding a fat pink pig in her arms.

The Darkball drifted towards them, gnashing its teeth. Sora slid across the ground until he was on the Darkball's side, then reached up with his Keyblade and smacked it backwards. Kairi was waiting for it at the door and hit it back to Sora like a tennis ball. Sora stabbed his Keyblade right thought the Heartless' mouth, destroying it. Sora turned to the two kids.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah…" the girl said dreamily. She was staring at Sora intently.

The boy was not as calm as he stood up. "What the heck was that thing?" he demanded.

Kairi stepped up next to Sora. "It was a Heartless. Nasty creatures, drawn to and created by Darkness itself."

The boy stared at them puzzled for a moment, then glanced down at Sora's Keyblade. His brows raised as he pointed at it.

"Hey, is that a Keyblade?" he asked.

Kairi and Sora looked surprised. "How'd you know that?" Kairi asked.

The boy opened the book and flipped through the pages. He scanned one, then turned the book and held it open. "It's here in the journal," he said.

Kairi leaned over and examined the page. On it was a sketch of a Keyblade styled to look like waves or clouds, with a smooth handle and a Keychain resembling an eye. There were some notes scribbled beside it, but they were in a code that Kairi could not decipher.

"Sora, do you know who's that is?" Kairi asked. There was no answer. "Sora?" she asked again, looking up.

Sora was on his knees on the floor with the girl. The pig was on its back between them, and both were giggling as they rubbed its soft belly.

"He's so cute!" Sora said, laughing.

"His name is Waddles!" the girl exclaimed.

Kairi rolled her eyes.

"So… who are you guys?" the boy asked, tucking the book under his arm.

"I'm Kairi," Kairi said, putting her hand on her chest. "That's Sora," she said, motioning towards her friend, who was still playing on the floor. "And these are-" Kairi began to motion behind her, but then stopped. "Huh?"

The sound of footsteps on stairs grew louder as Donald and Goofy stepped in. Donald tapped his webbed foot on the ground.

"Thanks for leaving us outside," Donald quacked in frustration.

Both Kairi and Sora blushed and rubbed the back of their heads.

"What are you guys' names?" Sora said, standing up.

The boy nodded. "My name's Dipper. That's my twin sister Mabel." The girl waved, her entire arm and hand in her sweater sleeve.

Kairi smiled, then turned back to Dipper. "Dipper, where did you get that book?" she asked.

Dipper pulled the book out again and showed it to her, revealing a large number "3" written on the cover. "I found it in a tree out in the woods. It has a ton of information about the goings-on here in Gravity Falls. Lots about monsters, magic, and so forth."

"May I see it?" Sora asked. Dipper nodded and handed it to him. Sora quickly flipped through the pages. Most of the pages were in some kind of code, but some were written so he could read them. They were about local creatures and places, complete with detailed sketches. Sora turned back to the Keyblade page and studied the Keyblade pictured. It was unlike any he'd ever seen. He noticed a sketch of what looked like a fox mask on the adjacent page.

"Do you know what it says about the Keyblade?" Sora asked.

Dipper shook his head. "No, I haven't deciphered the code yet," he replied.

Mabel giggled as she held Waddles up in her arms. "Dipper's a nerd," she said.

"Do you know who wrote this book?" Kairi asked. Dipper shook his head.

Kairi glanced at Sora. "Well, this book means that someone in this world knew a lot about Keyblades, or at the very least knew of a Keyblade wielder." Her brows perked up and she turned back to Dipper. "Hey, does it say anything about something called a Keyhole?"

Dipper put his hand on his chin and adjusted his hat. "A Keyhole? I don't think so. I've read over it about a dozen times, and I don't remember seeing anything like that. At least, out of the little I can read of it right now."

"Neerrdd!" Mabel teased, punching Dipper lightly on the shoulder.

Sora handed the book back to Dipper. "So, what are you guys doing here?" Dipper asked.

"We're looking for that Keyhole," Sora said. "We need to find it to get rid of the Heartless."

Dipper looked at the journal again. "It's strange that this has nothing on the Heartless in it. If the author knew about you Keyblade guys, wouldn't he know about them, too?"

Sora opened his mouth to answer, but was interrupted by a crackly, grumpy-sounding voice.

"What is all the commotion up here?" it shouted. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy turned to see an elderly man wearing a fez and a white tank top in the door. He stared at the group with an annoyed expression on his face.

"Look," the man grumbled. "It's okay if you have your friends over, but keep it down. I'm gonna be napping in front of the TV." With that, he huffed and turned away.

"That's our Great Uncle Stan," Mabel said. "We call him our 'Grunkle'".

Sora raised an eyebrow. "He seems… nice."

"He's not," Dipper said.

Donald stepped forward. "Shouldn't we keep looking?" he asked to Sora in a condescending tone. Sora shrugged and turned back to Dipper.

"Well, we need to keep looking for that Keyhole," he said. "Good luck with that book." He turned to leave.

"Wait!" Dipper called. Sora turned back to him. "Maybe we can help you. If I get a little more time to work on deciphering this, maybe I can figure out where this Keyhole thing is located."

"Wow, thanks," Kairi said, smiling. "That would help us out quite a bit,"

"Sure," Dipper said, returning the smile. "And while I work, Mabel can show you around."

Mabel set Waddles down and ran like a shot over to Sora's side, hugging his arm and squeezing tightly. "Yeah, I'll show you around. I'll show you around all day long." Sora chuckled nervously, and Kairi just stared.

Then Sora got an idea. "Hey, Donald," Sora said, turning to Donald. "Why don't you stay with Dipper? You're a magician, so maybe you can understand what some of that book says."

Donald crossed his wings. "No," he said bitterly.

"Gawrsh, Donald, why not?" Goofy asked.

Donald tapped his foot. "Because I don't want to,"

Sora leaned down in front of Donald's bill. "Come on, Donald," he said. He put on his best sad eyes. "Pleeeaasse?" he said dramatically.

Donald sighed and relented. "All right, all right," he quacked. He waddled over to Dipper, who extended the book to him. Donald snatched it up, opened it to the first page, and sat down next to one of the beds and began reading.

Sora shook his head, but then felt Mabel tug at his arm. She pulled him enthusiastically out of the room, and Kairi and Goofy followed.

"Welcome to the Mystery Shack!" Mabel gleamed, reminiscent of a real estate agent or tour guide. She waved her hand around. "The finest tourist attraction in Gravity Falls!"

The group headed down a flight of stairs. Mabel dragged them through a living room, where Stan was passed out in a chair in front of a television playing a cartoon. Mabel lead them through a door to an open room with shelves and racks of shirts, nick-knacks, and various props. There was a girl about Sora and Kairi's age at a counter, and a large man on a ladder fixing a shelf. Both looked over as the group came through.

"Yo, who are your friends?" the girl said in a laid-back, friendly voice.

Sora waved. "I'm Sora, and this is Kairi and Goofy."

The girl tipped her fur hat. "Wendy," she introduced. "And that's Soos," she said, motioning to the man.

The man flashed a peace sign. "'Sup, little dudes and dudettes?"

Mabel chuckled. "Just on our way to give our guests a little tour of the place. Don't let Grunkle Stan know though, or he might charge them."

Wendy made a motion across her lips. "Not a peep from me," she said. Mabel smiled and rushed Sora, Kairi, and Goofy through some curtains into another room.

Sora found himself in what looked like some sort of museum, full of wacky and strange creations claiming to be the remains of monsters or ancient artifacts. However, having seen real monsters and real magic relics for so long, Sora was not in the least bit impressed.

"This is the museum," Mabel explained. "This is the Mystery Shack's claim to fame!"

Sora and Kairi glanced at each other and rolled their eyes.

"So…" Kairi asked, "are there any, like, actual magic items in here?"

Mabel smiled and let out a "pssh" sound. "Nah, most of it's junk Stan's just thrown together over the years. I think we used to have a few things that may have been magic, but we don't know where most of them are anymore. Probably storage."

"Like what?" Goofy asked.

Mabel shrugged. "Like a voodoo talisman, a sword in an anvil, a big pot, a wand of some sort… oh! And this." Mabel reached over and pulled a charm off of a side shelf. "I think this is magic, but Grunkle Stan says it's too boring to put in the museum, and no one else believes me, so you can have it." She handed Sora the charm. It was another Summon Charm, with the image of some kind of rectangular electronic device on the gemstone. Feeling the connection, Sora could see that the individual attached to the charm was brave, friendly, and a thrill-seeker. He pocketed the charm and thanked Mabel.

Mabel led the group outside. The sunny day had gotten significantly more cloudy in the short time they had been in the house, with grey clouds filling the sky and blocking out the sun. The breeze had picked up and had gotten cooler, but it was still comfortably warm.

Mabel brought them over to the totem pole. "We're staying here with Grunkle Stan for the summer. It's such a cool place, and you meet all kinds of…" she leaned into Sora, "interesting people." Sora smiled at her.

Then he thought he heard a sound coming from the nearby woods. Sora looked towards them and listened. Mabel heard it too.

"Is that who I think it is?" she grumbled.

* * *

Lil' Gideon lit the last candle. He shook out the match, looking down at his work. A circle of small candles sat on the ground, a picture of Stan in the center. Lil' Gideon laughed.

"You think the secrets of the Mystery Shack are safe in your mind, Stanford?" Gideon said. "Once I perform this little errand for Hades, control over the Heartless will be mine!"

Lil' Gideon opened his journal to a page and began reading the inscription aloud. "Triangulum, entangulum. Vene foris dominus mentium. Vene foris videntis omnium!"

* * *

Sora, Kairi, Goofy, and Mabel peeked through the bushes to see Lil' Gideon huddled over a ring of candles. He fell to his knees as his eyes began to glow a bright blue, and he began to cryptically chant.

"Egassem sdrawkcab. Egassem sdrawkcab. Egassem sdrawkcab! Egassem sdrawkcab! Egassem sdrawkcab!"

Suddenly the world seemed to loose all color, as if it was suddenly drained. The black-and grey clouds in the sky slowed to a halt, and a nearby dragonfly paused in midair. It was as if time itself had frozen.

Suddenly, above the candles, a triangular shape seemed to materialize out of thin air. A loud laughing was heard, and Lil' Gideon took a step back. Sora watched as the triangle grew thin arms and legs, a hat appeared on top, and a single large eye appeared in its center.

The eye darted around creepily, and then the triangle turned a bright yellow. Then it began to speak.

"Oh, oh, Gravity Falls, it is good to be back!" the triangle said, glowing brighter with each syllable. "Name's Bill Cipher! And I take it you're some kind of living ventriloquist dummy? Ha ha! I'm just kidding! I know who you are, Gideon!"

Gideon was shocked and a touch concerned, while also annoyed that this creature he summoned was just as much of a fast talker as Hades.

"Hey, look what I can do!" Bill Cipher said. He waved his hand, and suddenly a Behemoth Heartless appeared behind him. It roared and stomped, and pointed its electric horn at Gideon.

Sora wanted to intervene, but could not seem to will himself to move forward. He wanted to, but it was as if he was frozen with the rest of time. He was able to look over to Kairi, who looked back at him with a worried expression.

Lil' Gideon stepped back as the Behemoth's horn got closer to him. "Y-you're insane!" he stuttered.

"Sure I am, what's your point?" Bill replied nonchalantly. He waved his hand again, and the Behemoth disappeared.

Gideon was getting fed up. "Listen to me, demon!" he yelled. "I have a job for you. I need you to enter the mind of Stanford Pines and retrieve some information for me!"

Sora heard Mabel gasp, and looked over to see her with a look of fear on her face.

"Oh, you probably want to know where 'it' is," Bill said, laughing. "Wait," he said, turning around. "Stan Pines…" he paused for a moment, then turned back around. "You know what, kid? You've convinced me. I'm sold!" he said in his fast talk. He hovered down to Gideon's level. "I'll help you with this, and in return you can help me with something I've been working on. We'll work out the details later."

Gideon knew he already had a deal going with Hades, but that was about to be done, so making another deal was not a problem for him. He extended his hand.

"Deal," he said.

Bill Cipher's hand glowed, and was soon enveloped with blue fire. He grabbed Gideon's hand and shook it as Sora and the others looked on.

Bill broke the handshake and the fire dissipated. "Well, time to invade Stan's mind!" he said cheerfully. "This should be fun! Remember, reality is an illusion, the universe is a hologram, buy gold, bye!" And with that, he vanished into thin air.

Color returned to the world, and time seemed to flow once more. Sora did not remember closing his eyes, but quickly opened them in time to see Kairi, Goofy, Mabel, and Gideon do it as well.

"It worked!" Gideon chortled. He laughed evilly. "Hades was right!"

Sora turned around a jogged a few feet away, far enough that he could talk to the others about what they had just seen without Gideon hearing them.

"Did you see that?" Kairi asked worriedly.

"Yeah," said Mabel. "What was that thing?"

"I don't know," Sora said. "But did you see that Heartless? Whatever it is, is dangerous, and it's not on our side."

"He also mentioned Hades!" Goofy added. "What's he doin' here?"

Sora shook his head. "There's something funny going on here. I think this mission is something beyond just clearing out Heartless. Something is going on."

"What do we do about it?" Kairi asked.

"Well, first thing's first, we need to stop that demon thing from finding whatever it is it's looking for in Stan's mind."

"But how?" Mabel asked, her voice frantic and afraid.

"Maybe Donald and Dipper would have an answer in that journal of theirs," Goofy suggested.

Sora nodded at him. "Good idea. We need to get back to the Mystery Shack, right away!"

* * *

"You want a soda, Donald?" Dipper asked.

Donald shook his head. "No thank you," he replied, flipping to the next page of the journal. He crooked his head slightly and quacked in confusion as he read the page and studied it. His feathers perked up, and he quacked loudly.

"What is it?" Dipper asked.

"I need to show Sora this!" Donald yelled. He bolted up and ran down the stairs and into the living room where Stan was still sleeping, Dipper following close behind. He almost ran right into Sora as he, Kairi, Goofy, and Mabel entered the room.

"Sora!" Donald quacked. "You need to see-"

"Hold that thought!" Sora interrupted. "We need to help Stan!"

Donald crooked his head. "Huh?"

Mabel explained. "This evil triangle guy said he's going to break into Grunkle Stan's mind and steal some information he has hidden, the location of something!"  
Dipper grabbed the book from Donald, annoying him slightly.

"Triangle guy? I feel like I've seen something like that before in the journal," he turned the pages and searched, soon landing on a page with a black illustration and a red splatter.

"Beware Bill," he read, "the most powerful and dangerous creature I've ever encountered. Do not summon at all costs, and whatever you do, never let him into your mind!"

Suddenly Stan began groaning and twitching in his sleep, startling Mabel.

"It is possible to follow the demon into a person's mind and prevent his chaos," Dipper continued. "One must simply recite an incantation."

"Then let's do it!" Mabel cried. "If we don't, the triangle will give Gideon what he's looking for, and Sora and Kairi say that he's teamed up with some bad dudes."

"We'll do it," Kairi said, placing a hand on Mabel's shoulder. "Sora, Donald, Goofy and I are used to fighting stuff like this. We'll go inside Stan's mind and find this 'Bill', as long as you guys stay here and make sure he stays safe." She glanced at Sora. "Do you think we can do that?"

Sora nodded. He looked over to Donald. "Can you do the spell to send us in there?"

Donald nodded back as Dipper handed him the journal. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi put their hands on the sleeping man's head.

Donald took a deep breath, then read the incantation. "Videntus omnium. Magister mentium. Magnesium ad hominem. Magnum opus. Habeas corpus! Inceptus Nolanus overratus! Magister mentium! Magister mentium! Magister mentium!"

There was a blue flash. Dipper and Mabel covered their eyes. When the light disappeared and the siblings looked again, the four were gone.

* * *

Sora looked around. "Woah," he remarked. "This is Stan's mind?"

The place was entirely in greyscale, much like the world was during the summoning. The Mystery Shack lay in front of them, but surrounded by various random objects: a magic eight ball, a broken swing set, an armchair, pointed signs, and wooden boats. They either sat decrepit on the grassy ground or floated in midair.

Sora activated Bullseye, Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace, Donald pulled out his staff, and Goofy equipped his shield. Every pair of eyes scanned around.

"Looking for me?" a shrill, echoing voice said. Everyone whirled around to see the triangular demon with one eye floating in the air in front of them, now holding a thin black cane.

"Ah, Yen Sid and King Mickey's lackeys, we meet at last. Keyblade, Paopu, Wand, Shield! I had a hunch I would run into you here!"

Sora stared in confusion at the demon. Did it just call him Keyblade?

"What do you mean by that?" he asked. "How do you know about Master Yen Sid and King Mickey?"

The creature stared directly at him. "Oh, I know lots of things." Images began to flash on its body, too fast for Sora to make out what they were. Suddenly the triangle spoke in a deeper, more menacing tone. "Lots of things…"

Kairi was equally confused, but spoke up. "What are you doing here? What do you want?" she demanded.

Bill Cipher reclined in the air, as if he was leaning in an invisible floating chair. "I'm just looking to see if there's a particular item located around here," he said in his normal voice. "Inside this Shack is a maze of a thousand doors representing the old man's memories. Behind one of them is a memory of this item and where it's currently located. I just need to find it, and Gideon will pay me handsomely."

Donald stomped on the ground. "Not if we stop you!"

"Yeah!" Goofy chimed in. "Gideon's working with Hades!"

"And you're working with Heartless!" Sora said.

Bill laughed. "That's what you're worried about?" he asked condescendingly. "Old flame-top and a couple of Heartless? Ha ha! Oh, if only you knew what item I was looking for…" He laughed again. "You're out of your league, kids! Turn around now before you see something you might regret."

Then he tipped his hat. "Later, suckers!" he yelled as he flew backwards into the shack.

"After him!" Sora shouted. He raised his Keyblade and barged into the shack. Somehow, it was larger on the inside. There were doors and sets of stairs arcing throughout the interior, and strange objects floating in the air.

Bill's laughter echoed from somewhere deep within. Sora took a step forward to chase it, but a Darkball appeared right in front of him.

"Heartless?" Sora said. "In here, too?"

"It's Bill!" Donald yelled. "He's bringing them in here! We have to get them put before they do damage to Stan's mind!"

Sora slashed at the Darkball, but it swooped over him and rammed into his back, gnashing its teeth and chewing at him. Sora fell forward with a grunt, but Donald came in and cast a Fire spell, hitting it back. As the Darkball fell, several Blue Rhapsodies, Barrel Spiders, and a pair of Large Bodies appeared to block their path. One of the Large bodies jumped, sending a shockwave as it landed that struck all four members of the group and forced them back.

Sora looked at Donald, and cast a spell. Donald was encircled by an orb of magical energy, which lifted him off the ground. Donald quacked as he cast a spell that caused a series of magical fireworks to explode around him, bursting right on the Heartless. Sora rushed forward and got as deep into the crowd of Heartless as he dared, allowing the explosions of color to erupt around him and force the monsters into the air. A few of the Blue Rhapsodies were destroyed.

"Take that!" Donald hollered before unleashing the final move: a series of fireworks rapidly burst around him, creating no opportunities for the Heartless to retaliate. The spell wore off and Donald fell gently to the ground. The Heartless, however, crashed down painfully.

Kairi took an advantage to arc around a Large Body, hitting its back with her Keyblade. The Large Body fell over, but Goofy was ready with his shield and pushed it back into Kairi's waiting Keyblade, which she promptly stabbed into the Large Body and defeated it.

However, one of the Large Bodies rushed Goofy, ramming him with its bloated stomach and slamming it into him, knocking him backwards. Donald cast a Blizzard spell to slow it down, and Sora jumped up and began rapidly striking its head until it vanished.

A Blue Rhapsody closed in and launched a Blizzard Spell at Kairi. She ducked and rolled to avoid it, then stood up directly below the Heartless, raising her Keyblade and batting it higher into the air. She hooked it with the flower-shaped bit of the key, then dragged it down and slammed it into the ground, killing it.

Sora slammed his Keyblade into a Barrel Spider, and Goofy did the same with his shield. The two Heartless careened through the air and slammed into one another, disappearing before they hit the ground. One last Barrel Spider remained, and pulled its sharp limbs into the barrel.

"Look out!" Sora said. Everyone dove out of the way before the Heartless exploded in a failed suicide bomb attempt.

As Donald rightened himself, he looked around. "Where did Bill go?" he asked.

Goofy scanned the shack. "I don't see him. We must have lost him."

Donald stomped his webbed foot. "Well, now what the heck do we do?"

Kairi thought about it. "The best thing we can do is look for whatever memory Bill's looking for. If we find it first, we may be able to keep it safe from him."

"Hey," Sora realized, "all of these memories are represented by doors, right? Well, if we can find the right memory, we'll be able to use our Keyblades to lock it so Bill can't get in. It will be safe, and no damage will be done."

"That's a good idea," Donald said, "but how do we know which memory to look for? We aren't even sure what item Bill is looking for. How would we know if we'd found it or not?"

"Wouldn't there be some sort of clue?" Kairi asked. "If this item is as powerful or as important as Bill says it is, then Stan would have to be having a special reaction to it."

"Unless even he doesn't know what it is," Donald said.

Sora sighed. "Our best bet is to find Bill. If he finds the memory, we need to lock it before he can see too much of it."

"But Sora, how will we find him?" Goofy asked. "There're easily a thousand doors here. This place is huge."

"We'll have to split up," Sora said. "But not too far. If someone finds the memory or Bill, they'll have to be close enough to call everyone else."

Kairi nodded. "All right," she said. She pointed down a long hallway of doors. "I'll go this way."

Donald and Goofy looked down another hallway and nodded to each other. Sora turned to face a third hall.

"Good luck, everyone!" he said. Then he began jogging down the hall. Kairi began a fast walk down hers, and Donald and Goofy hurried down theirs.

* * *

Sora had never seen so many doors. Each one looked different in some way or another; some were wooden, some were metal, some were small, some were huge, some were clean, and some were run-down. Sora wondered if his mind looked like this.

Sora opened a door and saw what appeared to be a scene of a younger Stan standing at a door holding a vacuum cleaner, obviously trying to sell it. Sora doubted a vacuum cleaner would be the item Bill was looking for, so he shut the door and continued along.

* * *

Donald opened a door, and found Stan watching Dipper chop wood. Goofy opened one and watched a very young Stan taking boxing lessons. Neither of them found what they were looking for.

"Hey Donald," Goofy said, "what do you think is goin' on? Something just ain't right. The Darkness is spreadin' to places it's never been before, Hades is out and about, and there's also that there coffin Lightning found. Whadya think it all is?"

Donald's eyes widened. "Oh yeah, I forgot to tell Sora and Kairi. That symbol that we saw on the coffin, I found it in Dipper's journal."

"Oh?" Goofy inquired. "What is it?"

"It's a powerful Light spell, but a really old one. One no one uses anymore."

"What is it suppose'd to do?" Goofy asked.

Donald paused. "Contain an extremely large or powerful Darkness."

* * *

Kairi peeked through a small door, hoping the image was not nearly as bad as the one of Stan stepping out of the shower that she had seen a few doors back. She cautiously peeked inside to see a memory of Stan putting a piece of paper into a safe and locking it. Was the paper the item? Kairi decided to lock it to be sure. She stood back, pointed Destiny's Embrace at the door, and allowed the magic beam to travel out and onto the rusty doorknob until she heard the clicking sound. Kairi lowered her Keyblade and tested the door. It was locked tight.

Suddenly she heard a voice. Quickly but quietly, Kairi jogged forward and peered around a corner.

Bill Cipher was there, holding a door even smaller than the one Kairi was just at in his grip. He peered inside for a moment, chuckling softly. On his form was what looked like a screen, and Lil' Gideon's image was displayed on it.

"Bill!" Gideon demanded. "Did you find the memory of that item yet?"

"Relax, short stack," Bill replied nonchalantly. "I've got it right here."

Gideon laughed. "Good! Now tell me where it is, and I'll fulfill my end of the bargain."

"Finally!" Bill said. "So the thing is, it's not actually here. It was given to-"

Kairi rushed forward, intent on not letting Bill see any more. She skidded up to him, then slapped the door out of his grip with her Keyblade. Bill and Kairi watched as the door slammed closed and slid across the ground. Kairi quickly lifted her Keyblade before Bill could react, shot out the beam and locked it.

"No no no no!" Bill screamed. He hovered over to the door, grabbed its handle, and tried to force it open, but it would not budge.

"Guys! Come to me!" Kairi shouted. As Bill struggled with the door, Sora, Donald, and Goofy ran up beside Kairi.

"The deal's off!" Gideon shouted.

"No no no, wait!" Bill pleaded.

"I'm going back to Hades!" Gideon snapped. With that, the image disappeared.

"Good job, Kairi!" Goofy congratulated.

Suddenly, Bill changed from bright yellow to a hellish red. His limbs and hat glowed white, and he turned around with an enraged look in his eye.

"You!" he shouted, pointing at the group. "You can't even imagine what you just cost me! Do you have any idea what I'm like…" His voice changed again to his hellish bass. "**_…when I'm mad?!_**"

Suddenly, a triangle of fire erupted around them. The ground shook, and an inverted pyramid rose beneath their feet, carrying them upwards. Sora and Kairi held onto each other for balance as the landscape shifted around them from the monochrome shack to a sky full of hellish stars and blazing comets. Bill himself grew until he was ten times his original size.

"_**Eat nightmares!**_" Bill screamed. He clawed his hands and pointed them at the group. Bolts of red lightning arced off them.

"Move!" Sora yelled, jumping out of the way. The bolt stuck the ground, creating a sizable burn.

Bill slammed into the ground, creating a flurry of fire rocketing across the ground towards them. Sora and Kairi jumped over the flames, but Donald and Goofy were clipped.

Bill then grew several additional arms and began punching at them rapidly. This time Donald and Goofy blocked, and Sora and Kairi were hit down by the giant fists. Bill then shifted his cyclops eye into a laser beam, blasting it at Sora and Kairi. Kairi staggered to her feet, jumped on top of Sora, and raised her Keyblade.

Sora closed his eyes and readied for the impact, but it never came. He glanced up and saw that Kairi had cast a Reflect spell around the two of them, blocking the laser and reflecting it back at Bill. The laser struck him in his eye, and he clawed at it as he doubled over.

"Ow!" he screamed. "My eye! Do you have any idea how long it takes to regenerate that?!"

Sora and Kairi stood up, then leapt at Bill in unison. They each performed a quick slash through the air, crossing each other's slash and creating an "x" shaped attack right on Bill, who yelped from the impact. They then both threw their Keyblades at him, knocking Bill backwards. The Keyblades returned, but Sora grabbed Destiny's Embrace and Kairi grabbed Bullseye. The two cross-slashed again, this time sliding across the ground and ramming Bill. They then threw their respective Keyblades back to their owner, with Bill in the crossfire and struck as the two weapons changed hands.

Bill swept his hand and smacked Sora and Kairi back, They skidded across the ground, but both leapt to their feet next to Donald and Goody. Sora quickly cast a Cure spell on Kairi, and Donald cast a Cure spell on him.

Bill dropped his hands, revealing a damaged eye. He raised his hands, which erupted with fire and lightning, and blasted them at the group. Everyone yelled as the blast struck the ground below them, blasting them in every direction. Sora landed on his face, and slowly got back up. Bill pointed his hand at Sora again.

Then a shield and a staff rocketed through the air and struck Bill in his eye. He shut it in pain, and the shield and staff returned to Goofy and Donald. Sora and Kairi ran up next to each other, pointed their Keyblades at Bill, and blasted lasers from them. Both lasers struck Bill, causing him to cry out.

"Enough!" Bill shouted, waving his arms. Suddenly all the background changed, and Sora found him and the others with no ground beneath their feet, floating in a white void.

Bill turned yellow again and began speaking in his normal voice again. "You know, I'm impressed with you guys," he said, brushing off his hat, though with an annoyed look still in his eye. "So I'm going to let you kids off the hook this once. You might be of use to me later."

"What's going on?" Sora yelled. "What are Hades and Gideon looking for?"

Bill ignored the question. "But know this:" he said, "a terrible Darkness approaches. Soon the day will come when everything you love will change. You'll try to fight it, and when you do…" Bill's form showed the image of fire and shadow in a horrific combination.

"Oh, can it!" Donald quacked.

"Yeah!" Sora reciprocated. "You have no dominion over the worlds!"

"Maybe not right now," Bill said coyly. "But things change, Keyblade. Things… change." He tipped his hat. "Until then, I'll be watching you. I'll be watching…" There was a flash of blue light.

* * *

Gideon slammed his foot down. "Hades!" he screamed. "Hades, where are you?" He looked around the woods for the lord of the dead, but found no sight of him. "Bill failed me! All he said was that it wasn't here!"

Little did he know that Hades was sulking in the shadows nearby, listening. He pondered upon hearing what Gideon said.

"It's not here, huh?" Hades murmured to himself. "Well, I can't go back empty-handed. Let's just hope the others find it somewhere else." It was not in Hades' nature to flee, but he genuinely did not feel it was worth it to return to Villains Vale. Someone was bound to find it. Besides, it was not like… he… would come after him, right?

Hades sighed. "I've got an Underworld to run," he said, turning and leaving through the woods to head back to his home.

* * *

Sora opened his eyes. He was laying on carpet. He sat up at the same time Kairi, Donald, and Goofy did, with Goofy rubbing his head. Stan was still asleep.

"You're back!" Dipper exclaimed, running up to Kairi and helping her up. "Did you do it?"

Kairi smiled and looked over at Sora. "Yeah, we did it," she said. She turned to look at Mabel. "Your uncle's mind is safe."

"What was Bill looking for?" Mabel asked.

Kairi shrugged as she stood up. "I don't know. All I heard him say was that it's not here anymore."

"Which means Hades has probably gone somewhere else to look for it," Sora added.

"That still leaves the Heartless," Donald said.

"Wait!" Dipper said, flipping through the journal. "I found something about that Keyhole thing you were talking about!"

"Really?" Goofy said excitedly.

"Yeah," Dipper said. "It was on the same page about the Keyblade. You can't see it normally, though." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small, switch-activated blacklight. He flicked it on, and a message could be seen written over the picture of the Keyblade, complete with a sketch of the outline of a Keyhole.

"It says it's right here in the Mystery Shack," Dipper said. "In the attic."

"Can we go up there?" Kairi asked. Dipper nodded.

* * *

As Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Dipper, and Mabel walked into the attic, they immediately noticed the glowing outline of a Keyhole in the center of the triangular window. It glowed brighter as the Keyblade wielders stepped closer.

"Kairi, do you want to do this one?" Sora asked.

Kairi thought about it, then shook her head. "No," she replied. "You told me I'd feel it when I'm ready. I don't think this is the one."

"Okay," Sora said. He stepped forward and pointed Bullseye at the Keyhole. The Keyhole glowed bright white as the beam blasted from the Keyblade. As soon as it was locked, the Keyhole vanished.

"That was so cool," Mabel said.

"Yeah," Dipper said. "Oh! One more thing…" He reached into his pocket again and pulled out a small, circular piece of what looked to be thick paper. He handed it to Sora.

"That fell out of the journal on Bill's page. You might be able to use it."

Sora inspected the circle. It was a glyph or symbol of some sort; a wheel with various symbols on the outer rim, and a picture of what was unmistakably Bill Cipher in the center.

"Thanks," Sora said. He activated his Keyblade and took off the arrowhead. He replaced the Keychain with the Cipher Wheel, and Bullseye transformed. The new Keyblade looked lie it was made from a pine log, with sprouts and leaves sprouting at various points. The bit now resembled a golden handprint, and the grip was now triangular with a circular piece in the center. Bullseye had transformed into Twisted Mystery.

"Thanks for all your help," Kairi said, patting Dipper and Mabel on their heads. "You keep this place safe for us, okay?"

"Aww, you're leaving?" Mabel asked, scooting closer to Sora.

"Yep, we need to figure out what's going on," Sora said. He smiled at them. "But if Bill shows up again, we will too to beat him up."


	7. The Great Sea

"This isn't too bad," Kairi said as she fired the weapons. She struck a Heartless ship on the wing, sending it careening into another ship and destroying both of them.

"D'ya think you like shooting better than flyin', Kairi?" Goofy asked, monitoring the shields.

Kairi giggled. "Maybe," she replied. "At least there aren't as many this time."

The Gummi Ship had hit another swarm of Heartless Ships, but they were much more manageable and in far fewer numbers than before. Sora piloted the ship mostly straight, and Kairi simply shot at whatever was coming near them.

Sora even began to relax slightly, leaning back in his seat and enjoying the slower pace this battle seemed to be going at. They would be arriving at the next world any moment.

Just as he was wondering what the next world was going to be, he saw a blue dot ahead. As they approached, Sora saw the world was mostly covered in water, with the exception of a large, beautiful tropical island rich with palm trees and a mountain, a small island with an enormous elongated peak, and some other, smaller sandbars dotted across. Even from a distance, Sora could see the crashing waves of the ocean.

"Wow," Kairi said, staring with an expression of wonder at the world. "It looks like… home."

Sora nodded in agreement. It did remind him of the Destiny Islands… the warm beaches, the tall trees, the clear waters… he almost felt homesick looking at it.

Suddenly, there was a loud beeping and a red light blared. Sora and Kairi were visibly startled as they looked back to their controls.

"What is it?" Kairi yelled.

Donald tapped on his screen. "There's a huge object approaching from the starboard side! Get ready!"

Sora clutched the controls and headed towards the world. Before long, a large shadow covered them and a massive vessel loomed over and past them.

"What is that?" Kairi shouted, aiming her weapons at the vessel.

"Wait…" Sora said. He eyed the vessel. "I know that ship…" It was a giant red galleon with a massive golden crest on the back, golden trim along its bannisters, and a golden skull decorating the front. It had billowing white sails, and displayed a menacing black flag with a white skull and crossbones on it. Sora gasped.

"That's _The Jolly Roger_!" he yelled to his crew. "That's Captain Hook's ship!"

"Captain Hook?" Kairi said with disgust. "What's he doing here?"

"I don't know," Sora said. "Maybe the same reason Hades was in Gravity Falls."

Kairi eyed the ship angrily. "Should we shoot at it?"

"No!" Sora called. "We can't take something that big. We just need to hope they didn't see us."

_The Jolly Roger_ sailed over them, but did not seem to react to their presence.

Kairi huffed. "Come on, Sora. This ship has taken down things bigger than that."

Sora glanced over at her. "Why do you want to fight _The Jolly Roger_ so badly, Kairi?"

Kairi huffed again. "So many bad things happened on that ship… I was carried around on that ship like cargo! That's where you and Riku were fighting, and Hook… oh! I hate that ship so much!" She pointed the blasters at the stern of the boat.

"Don't!" Sora yelled. But he was too late. Kairi held down the trigger and fired a stream of blaster shots at _The Jolly Roger_. Each shot connected, creating small explosions as they hit the ship.

"Kairi, stop!" Sora called. He was about to jump out of his seat, but then saw the pirate ship turn around. It turned until its port faced them, ominously sailing between them and the world. There was a noticeable explosion, and Sora saw a cannonball headed straight for them.

"Hold on!" Sora yelled, twisting the steering and dipping the Gummi Ship down. The cannonball scraped over the top of the Gummi Ship, causing the whole ship to rock.

"That did a lot of damage to our shield!" Goofy exclaimed.

Another cannonball shot out towards them. Kairi turned the blasters on it and fired, destroying the cannonball just before it reached them.

Suddenly, several cannons fired on _The Jolly Roger_, and a string of cannonballs headed towards them. Sora pulled back on the controls and rocketed upwards while Kairi and Donald focused on trying to destroy the projectiles. Donald's pulse destroyed Some, but two struck the ship violently.

"We're already below half shield!" Goofy hollered.

"Kairi, what have you done?!" Sora exclaimed as he tried to level out.

"I-" Kairi stuttered, regret and remorse evident in her voice.

Sora hit the thrusters and rocketed forward towards the pirate ship. "The only way we're getting through this is if we get past the ship and to the world!" Sora exclaimed. "Hold on tight!"

Several more cannons fired, and Sora spun and swerved to avoid the shots. Kairi and Donald focused their fire directly in front of the ship as to clear Sora's path the best they could. Sora dodged and dipped, but another cannonball struck them. The red alarm began blaring again.

"We're out of shields!" Goofy yelled. "The next one will damage the ship directly!"

Sora slammed the controls forward and rocketed right at _The Jolly Roger_.

"Sora!" Donald quacked. "What are you doing?!"

"The only thing I can do!" Sora shouted back. Aiming for the mast, the Gummi Ship soared towards the white sails.

"We'll crash!" Donald screamed. The masts were right in front of them.

Sora yanked sideways on the controls, twisting and turning them. The Gummi Ship suddenly turned completely sideways, causing everyone to slide in their seats. The ship roared through the gap, just barely avoiding the posts and sails as it escaped through to the other side. Sora leveled the ship out, and pointed it down to the world.

"Good flying, Sora!" Goofy cheered.

Suddenly, the entire ship shook and crashing was heard.

"They shot us from behind!" Donald yelled.

Sora attempted to zoom away, but had no feedback.

"They took out the thrusters!" Sora yelled. "I can't speed us up or slow us down!"

The ship entered into the atmosphere of the world, and though everyone knew they were finally out of range of Hook, everyone was still panicking.

Sora pulled on the controls and twisted them, but the Gummi Ship only wobbled and shook.

"Brace for impact!" Sora screamed. "We're going to crash!"

* * *

The landing had not been a pleasant one. Granted, if they had landed on the sandy beach, it would have been even worse, but the Gummi Ship struck down in the shallow waters around one of the sandbars. There was a massive splash as the spaceship impacted, badly shaking up the crew inside. However, due to the waters being shallow, the ship did not sink far before settling and laying broken in the water.

Sora was the first to exit, holding his arm. He tenderly rolled up his sleeve and inspected the wound: a small, bleeding gash just below his shoulder, that was bruised all around the cut. Sora gritted his teeth as the salty ocean air hit it, and lowered his sleeve. He took a step out of the ship, but suddenly felt a sharp pain in his leg and stumbled. He fell into the water, going less than a few feet down before stopping on his hands and knees on the floor. A rock dug into his knee, and he quickly stood up, breaching the water and gasping for air. The wound on his arm stung from the salt water, and he felt another stinging on the leg he had tripped with. Sora pulled himself through the water to the sandy shore, then quickly sat down on the warm sand and pulled up his pant leg, revealing an even larger bloody cut just below his knee.

Donald stumbled out next, tripping like Sora had into the water. He floated right up to the top and swam to the shore, more dizzy than hurt. Goofy followed, jumping down into the water and wading while rubbing his head.

Kairi peered out next, rubbing her bruised hand. She limped slightly, but slowly dipped down into the water and gently walked across. She glanced at Sora with an expression of guilt on her face, but did not say anything as she slowly limped away to sit down by a large rock.

"Is everyone okay?" Goofy asked.

Sora nodded. "I think so. I'm a little cut up, but I'll be fine."

Donald looked over to Kairi, who had distanced herself from them. "How about you, Kairi?"

Kairi pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, exposing a sizable gash on her arm. "I'm fine," she said quietly, rubbing her twisted ankle.

Donald stood up and pulled out his staff. He pointed it at Kairi, then cast a Cure spell. Kairi did not even react to the magic bells and glowing above her, but stopped rubbing her ankle and simply hugged her legs to her chest.

Sora activated Twisted Mystery and raised it above his head.

"Heal!" he said, casting the healing spell on himself. He felt the pain on his arm and leg subside, and looked at his leg to see a red mark where the cut used to be. He checked his arm to see that the bruise was still there, but the cut was not.

Goofy wandered to the edge of the water and peered at the Gummi Ship. "Well," he said. "We're going to have to fix it."

"You can fix it?" Kairi said, still quiet, but loud enough for the others to hear.

Donald nodded. "Yeah. Goofy and I have fixed this thing so many times before. The damage doesn't even look that bad."

Sora hopped to his feet. However, instead of going to the Gummi Ship, he marched straight over to Kairi.

"What was that?" Sora asked sternly. "I told you not to fight!"

Kairi squeezed her legs closer. "I… I'm sorry…" she said. "I didn't mean…"

Sora put his hands on his hips. "That was dangerous! You could have gotten someone seriously hurt! Or worse, you could have gotten yourself seriously hurt! What were you thinking?!"

Kairi buried her face in her knees. "I don't know…" she replied. He voice sounded like she was on the verge of crying. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Sora saw her reaction and backed off. He sighed in frustration, but his expression softened. He opened his mouth to apologize, but no sound came out. Instead, he just turned back towards the ship and walked over to Donald and Goofy, who watched him with saddened expressions.

Sora sighed as he reached them, then rubbed the back of his head. "How long do you think it will take to fix it?" he asked.

Donald and Goofy looked at the ship. "Hmm… well, the damage is mainly confined to the front and the back," Goofy said. "So with two main areas needin' repair…"

"And the addition of replacing broken pieces…" Donald pondered.

Goofy shrugged. "We should have it up and runnin' in no time."

Sora nodded. "Good," he said.

Kairi wiped a tear from her eye. She did not mean for anyone to get hurt. Why had she become so vengeful all of a sudden? That was not like her. She sniffled a bit, then looked at the rock she was sitting by. Then she raised her head from her knees. Something had gotten her attention. She stood up and ran her hand over the stone.

"Sora!" she called. Sora turned to look, and saw Kairi pointing at the large stone she had been sitting by. He squinted his eyes to see through the bright sunlight, but was soon able to make out what Kairi was pointing at: there were markings carved into the stone, making out the shape of what looked like fishhooks. Sora jogged over and ran his hand over the stone.

"There's someone else here," he said.

Suddenly, a yelp came from what sounded like the other side of the stone. Donald and Goofy retrieved their weapons, Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace, and Sora activated Twisted Mystery. Sora and Kairi scaled the rock, climbing up to the top as Donald and Goofy followed.

Sora hopped to the top of the boulder and saw a young woman with tan skin and long brown hair, wearing a red top, a tan skirt, a red sash, and a blue and white necklace. She was backing up and holding an oar, pointing it at a series of Heartless: two Pirates, six Turquoise Marches, and seven spiked Burrfish. With each step she took backwards, the Heartless got ever closer.

Sora leapt off of the rock and at the Heartless, his Keyblade raised in the air. He came down right on top of one of the floating Turquoise Marches, slamming it to the ground. The woman yelped in surprise, then again when Kairi jumped in and swatted a Burrfish with her Keyblade. The Heartless turned their attention to the Keyblade wielders, then attacked. The Turquoise Marches whirled through the air, sending spheres of water flying at the two. Sora rolled and Kairi jumped out of the way. As the Turquoise Marches closed in, they were suddenly knocked back by Goofy's shield. Goofy caught the returning shield as he descended the rock, and Donald jumped down, swinging his staff at one of the Pirates.

The Pirate swung its sword at Donald, and the two weapons clashed. Both swung their weapons downwards, clashing again. Donald pushed off, then jumped up and smacked the Pirate upside the head.

Sora hit one of the Burrfish into another, destroying them both. Then one of the Turquoise Marches flew down and summoned a pillar of water beneath Sora's feet. The geyser stuck Sora and painfully launched him into the air, but Sora recovered while still airborne and quickly executed an arial combo on the Heartless as he fell, defeating it before he hit the ground.

Kairi raised Destiny's Embrace into the air and cast a Thunder spell, sending lightning striking down on a group of Turquoise Marches. The Heartless spasmed and shook from the electrocution, and Kairi took the opportunity to jump right in the middle of their huddle and whirl around, striking them all and destroying many of them.

As Donald defeated the Pirate, Goofy held his shield in front of him and charged the remaining Burrfish, ramming them and pushing them back. The Burrfish took damage each time they tried to escape, and the charge ended with Goofy slamming the Heartless into the stone, destroying them.

The other Pirate attacked Sora, with its sword and Sora's Keyblade clashing. They began intensely dueling, but Sora managed to trip the Pirate up and make it fall on its back. Sora then turned his Keyblade down and stabbed down, defeating the foe.

Donald finished off the last Burrfish, beating it down with his staff. He smiled triumphantly as it vanished.

Sora deactivated his Keyblade and turned to the woman, who still had her oar pointed in front of her.

"It's okay," Sora said. "You're safe now."

The woman sighed with relief and lowered her oar. "Thank you," she said. "The Darkness is spreading faster and growing stronger."

Sora approached the woman. "What do you know about the Darkness?"

The woman set her oar on the ground. She reached to her necklace and opened it like a locket, revealing a dazzling, glowing green stone inside.

"The Mother Island, Te Fiti, had her Heart stolen by the demigod Maui. This is it, in physical form. When the Heart was taken, Darkness was unleashed. When these creatures began appearing on my island, I tasked myself with finding Maui and making him restore Te Fiti's Heart."

Sora crossed his arms. "Wow. You're very brave."

The woman smiled.

"What's your name?" Goofy asked, walking up.

"Moana," the woman said. "Moana of Motunui."

Suddenly, the ground began to shake. Moana closed her necklace and grabbed her oar off of the ground. Sora activated his Keyblade while his friends brandished their own respective weapons.

A large shadow loomed over the stone, and suddenly a massive figure appeared. It jumped down with a thud, then suddenly ran towards the ocean.

"A boat!" the figure cried in a loud voice as he ran to what was presumably Moana's boat. "The gods have given me a b-" The figure turned and saw the group, all looking at him. He was a hulk of a man with long hair a grass and leaf skirt, and tan skin covered in hundreds of tattoos. "Uh…" the man stuttered.

The woman gasped slightly, but stepped forward. She planted the end of her oar in the ground like it was a staff and stood straight.

"Maui," she said in her best authoritative voice, "shapeshifter, demigod of the wind and sea, I am Moana of Mot-"

"Hero of men," the man interrupted. "And women. I interrupted. Start over. You're doing great, by the way." He winked and clicked his tongue at her.

Sora and Kairi lowered their weapons in confusion.

"Wha-?" Moana stuttered. "No! I'm here to-"

"Oh, of course, of course, oh yes, yes, yes!" Maui interrupted again. "Maui always has time for his fans. That's why you're all here! So who wants to go first? You want me to sign the oar or the giant keys first?"

"Shut up!" Donald hollered, stamping his feet.

"We're not here for autographs!" Sora shouted.

Maui's eyes widened as he looked surprised.

Moana stomped up to him. "I'm here because you stole the Heart of Te Fiti, and you will board my boat, sail across the Great Sea, and put it back!"

Maui scoffed and laughed slightly. "It almost sounds like you don't like me," he said.

Kairi stomped up and smacked Maui in the stomach with her Keyblade. He doubled down and grasped his gut, moaning slightly.

"Because of you, Darkness is spreading!" Kairi shouted. "Heartless are endangering people, and trying to destroy everything!"

Maui stood straight and put his hands on his hips. "Hey, I only took that Heart as a gift for you mortals. So what I believe you're trying to say is 'thank you'."

"'Thank you'?" Moana said, frustrated.

"You're welcome!" Maui exclaimed.

Sora huffed and marched up to Maui. "Look. If you care about the mortals so much that you'd steal the Heart of Te Fiti for them, then obviously you wouldn't want them destroyed, right?"

Maui shrugged. "Well, I mean, yeah, but…"

"And what if they knew you were the one that caused that Darkness?" Sora continued.

Maui sighed. "Well, I…"

"You'd be nobody's hero," Sora said. "But restore the Heart and end this Darkness, and you'll be people's hero forever."

Maui stared at Sora for a moment, then sighed in surrender. "You're right," he said. "I need to fix this. But if we're going to stand any chance against Te Kā, I'm going to need my fishhook."

"Who's Te Kā?" Goofy asked.

Maui rolled his eyes. "Te Kā is the biggest form of Darkness that was unleashed when I took the Heart. She was the reason I lost it. She knocked me right out of the sky, and I lost both the Heart and my magic fishhook."

Sora put his hand on his chin. "So where's your fishhook now?" he asked.

Maui chuckled slightly. "I know exactly where it is. It's with my old enemy, Tamatoa. If anyone was to have it, it would be that beady-eyed bottom feeder. He collects all sorts of artifacts, and he wanted my hook for a long time."

"Okay," Kairi said. "We'll go with you. Fighting Darkness is kind of our thing."

Sora turned to Kairi. "Actually, Kairi, why don't you stay with Donald and Goofy and sit this one out?"

Kairi scoffed angrily. "Look, Sora, I know you're mad at me, and you have every right to be, but I'll remind you that I'm still training right now! I'm trailing you to learn! So you're going to let me follow you or… or… or I'll tell Master Yen Sid on you!"

Donald and Goofy glanced between the two. They then shared a look with Moana and Maui.

"What's going on?" Moana mouthed.

"Don't ask," Donald mouthed back.

Sora sighed and shrugged. "Fine," he said. "Just don't do anything crazy."

Kairi huffed and stomped off to the boat. Sora turned over to Donald and Goofy.

"You guys sure you'll be okay here fixing the ship?" he asked.

Goofy nodded. "We'll be fine. Just keep each other safe now, you hear?"

Sora smiled and nodded. He turned and walked towards the boat. Moana walked up beside him.

"Thank you for helping," she said.

Sora smiled at her. "You're welcome," he replied.

Kairi watched the exchange with a feeling of jealousy. She crossed her arms and leaned against the mast.

As Maui followed them to the boat, he glanced back at Donald and Goofy. Goofy had turned to head back to the ship, but Donald glared at Maui and motioned his wings in a "I'm watching you" motion at the demigod.

"So," Moana said, boarding the boat. "Which way?"

* * *

The Captain extended his hook, showing the shiny metal off to the audience before him. In his other hand, he showed a chart of drawings, dotted on with black ink and drawn with bold strokes. His bumbling right-hand, Mr. Smee, looked in apprehension at the others, but smiled and looked up at his captain.

"I think we've gotten through to them, Cap'n!" Smee said excitedly.

Captain Hook leaned down and pointed at the drawings with his hook. "Help us find this," he enunciated, "and kill the brats, and the Heart of Te Fiti is yours. Do you understand me?"

The small chief stared up at him, then turned to its people. It knocked on its body rhythmically, and they all lowered their weapons and knocked in response. Hook grinned as Pirates and Burrfish manifested around them.

* * *

Sora hung on the mast, admiring the view. It was admittedly simple: just calm ocean as far as the eye could see. The sun would have been unbearably hot if the cool ocean breezes had not been there, cooling them down. The air smelled of salt.

The soothing environment seemed to be helping calm Sora and Kairi, who were still frustrated with one another, but not nearly to the extent they had been when they departed. Sora glanced at Kairi, who had been sitting on the edge of the boat, at the exact time she happened to look over at him. They locked eyes for a moment, then turned away, blushing slightly. It was almost as if they forgot they were supposed to be cross with one another.

Maui dipped his hand into the water, feeling the current. He scanned the horizon, looking ahead of them.

Moana was watching Maui, observing his actions and studying him, as if she was trying to take in what he was doing and learn herself. She then lifted her head and turned to look at the back of the boat.

"Do you hear something?" she asked.

Sora let go of the mast and Kairi stood up, both walking over to where Moana was standing. Kairi and Sora closed their eyes and listened. At first there was only the sound of the waves, but then a faint drumming sound could be heard.

"Yeah," Kairi replied, opening her eyes. "What is that?"

Maui listened too, then suddenly jumped upright.

"Kakamora!" he shouted. "Murderous little pirates!"

A strange mist began to swirl behind them, rising high off of the ocean foam. A pair of massive silhouettes emerged from the mist, the first one breaching to show a massive sailboat with figures standing on it. As Sora looked closer, he saw what the figures were: they looked like people, but were extremely small and wore coconuts over their bodies, with only their arms and legs sticking out. Stylized and colorful faces were drawn on the fronts of the coconuts.

Kairi crooked her head. "They're kind of… cute."

No sooner had she finished the statement, the tiny people pulled weapons out and drew angry expressions on their shells. Hundreds more Kakamora suddenly emerged, drumming on stones and jumping up and down.

Then the other silhouette broke free, and Sora and Kairi instantly recognized it.

"What kind of boat is that?!" Moana shouted.

Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades. "It's _The Jolly Roger_!" Sora shouted. "It's Captain Hook!"

The two evil boats grew closer, separated just enough to allow their much smaller boat in between them. The Kakamora drummed louder, and Pirate Heartless swarmed the deck of _The Jolly Roger_.

"Why is Hook here now?" Kairi said.

Sora was about to tell her to keep calm, but suddenly remembered something.

"Hold on a second," he said. He turned to Maui. "You said that this Tamatoa collects artifacts and treasures, right?"

Maui glanced around at the enemies, then pulled a rope that released the sail, jolting the boat forward. "Yeah, why?" he shouted.

Sora turned to Kairi. "Remember what Hades was doing in Gravity Falls? He was looking for some sort of artifact. He even got Gideon and Bill looking for it. That must be why Hook's here, and why he's working with the Kakamora! Hook is trying to get to Tamatoa, because he's looking for the same artifact Hades was!"

Kairi looked up the the Kakamora. "But what are they looking for?"

Sora shook his head. "I don't know. But we need to make sure that we reach Tamatoa before they do!"

Suddenly, a tall figure appeared, peering over the deck of _The Jolly Roger_. He was a thin man with a black mustache, extravagant red clothing, a massive hat with a feather, and an all-too-familiar silver hook in place of his left hand.

"Hook," Kairi mumbled.

"Little pests!" Captain Hook shouted down at them. "Haven't had enough yet, have you?"

Wooden planks extended off both ships, and soon Pirate Heartless and Kakamora began raining down on top of them, landing heavily on the boat and weighing it down.

"Hey!" Moana shouted.

"This boat can't take this kind of weight!" Maui shouted. "Get them off!"

"On it!" Sora said, leaping into battle, he smacked the Kakamora away with his Keyblade, knocking them into the ocean. Kairi sword fought with the Pirates, disarming one and striking it down before tricking another into stabbing a fellow Heartless. Moana ran up and kicked one of the Kakamora into the water, when suddenly one jumped at her and grabbed her necklace. It swiftly pulled it over her head, jogging a few feet away with it.

"No!" Moana shouted, diving at the creature. Before she could reach it, the Kakamora jumped off the boat and onto a rope dangling from its ship, and began climbing it.

"They've got the Heart!" Kairi shouted.

"Forget it, it's gone now!" Maui yelled, attempting to steer the boat through any gap he could find.

Sora spun around with his Keyblade extended, knocking nearby Kakamora and Heartless away. He then turned and sprinted before leaping onto the Kakamora rope, chasing after the Kakamora with the Heart.

"They'll kill him!" Maui worried.

"No, they won't," Kairi assured.

Sora scaled the rope as the drumming grew louder and the sounds of battle below grew further away. He reached the deck and hoisted himself up, only to be greeted by a massive swarm of Kakamora staring him down. They brandished weapons like swords and cleavers and rushed him a wave of coconuts headed right at him.

Sora pointed his Keyblade forward and cast a Blizzard spell. The icy crystals shot out and froze the front line solid, but the massive horde simply climbed over the ice statues and continued forward until they were at Sora's feet.

Sora swung low with his blade to swat and stroke the attackers, and soon had to swing higher when they began jumping at him. A small group appeared behind him and blew darts, two of which struck Sora in his shoulder blade and on his behind. Sora winced in pain before pulling the darts out, but felt those parts of his body begin to go limp.

"Great," Sora muttered as the affected arm and leg went limp and numb, making Sora fall to one knee as the Kakamora leapt at him. He swung his Keyblade with his still active arm to swat a few away, but knew he would need some help. Kairi, Moana, and Maui were too far away to help now.

Unless…

Sora rolled out of the way of the Kakamora's assault, quickly deactivated Twisted Mystery, and reached into his pocket with his good hand. He felt around and grabbed one of the Summon Charms, though he was not sure which one it was. Just before a second wave of Kakamora hit him, he pulled the Charm out of his pocket and clenched it to his chest.

"Give me strength!" he shouted.

Sora looked up to see the Kakamora gone. He was in a familiar grey and black void, with swirling lights around him. The environment began to change, and soon Sora found himself in a beautiful countryside lined with tall trees, blue skies, and a twisting dirt road.

"Sora!" a new voice called, growing closer at an alarming rate and accompanied by the fierce sound of a motor. Sora stood up, seemingly unaffected by his ailments, and saw a red, old-fashioned motorcar roaring towards him, kicking up a storm of dust and dirt behind it. Behind the wheel was his summoned ally: a curious looking toad in a red coat, yellow waistcoat, and blue bowtie.

"Tally-ho! Tally-ho!" the ally shouted. Sora smiled. Now that he had met his ally, he knew his name: J. Thaddeus Toad.

"Come!" Toad shouted, whooping with delight. "Join me! Come on a jolly ride! Travel! Change! Excitement!" Sora was ready to accept his offer, but there was one issue: Toad was not slowing down.

The motorcar zoomed towards him, and Sora leapt into the air, allowing it to pass under him. He landed in the passenger seat, jostled but unhurt. The environment changed back to the Kakamora ship, where the pirate creatures were hopping and flailing in confusion and fear.

Toad twisted the steering wheel, and the motorcar began spinning in circles, making tire tread donuts on the wooden deck as it screeched around and around. The car spun into the crowd of monsters, sending them flying every which way or pinning them underneath. Sora held on as Toad laughed maniacally and began to loudly sing an upbeat, merry tune:

_"We're merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,_  
_merrily on our way to nowhere in particular!_  
_We're merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,_  
_merrily on our way where the roads are perpendicular!"_

Sora leaned out the passenger side door as the car continued to spin, swiping and striking at any Kakamora he happened to see pass by with his Keyblade. He was relieved Moana and Maui were not seeing this; they would be thoroughly confused.

Toad kept singing:

_"We're always in a hurry!_  
_We have no time to stall!_  
_We've got to be there, we've got to be there,_  
_but where we can't recall!"_

Sora could not help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. He felt his arm and leg begin to go numb again, and knew the summon was about to wear off. He prepared Twisted Mystery to cast a Cure spell on himself as soon as the summon ended, but decided to join in on the last verse.

_"Whoo! We're merrily, merrily, merrily,_  
_merrily, merrily on our way, and we may_  
_be going through oceans dire and tangled briar and wildfire!_  
_We're not so sure, but what do we care? We're only sure we got to be there! _  
_We're merrily on our way to nowhere at all!"_

As they finished the last note, Toad and his motorcar vanished in a brilliant display of colored light. Sora rolled to the ground and cast his Cure spell. He felt his arm and leg gain mobility again, though they still felt stiff. Sora looked around and saw no enemies between him and the Kakamora with the Heart, who was about to hand it off to another Kakamora with a seashell crown. Sora swooped in and grabbed the Heart, kicking the two enemies into the ocean. He turned and ran to the edge where he had boarded from.

Just before he reached the edge, a pair of Arial Pirates and a Burrfish appeared in front of him.

* * *

Maui grabbed a Pirate and threw it into the water. Kairi hit away a Turquoise March, then glanced up at _The Jolly Roger_. She noted the canons, and saw that they were pointed in the direction of the Kakamora ship.

"Maui!" she called. Maui punched a Kakamora, then acknowledged her.

Kairi pointed up at the canons. "Can you throw me up there?"

Maui glanced up then nodded. He cupped his hands together, and Kairi jumped into them, crouching down.

"Chee-hoo!" Maui cried as he tossed Kairi up. She felt the wind rush past her as she flew up and landed on the barrel of one of the canons. She bent down and got as close as she could to the other end, then cast a Fire spell. The rings of fire mostly just singed the wood, but one made it through the tight opening and lit the fuse. Kairi executed a backflip and fell back down to the boat, landing just as the canon went off.

The cannonball fired right from _The Jolly Roger_ into the Kakamora ship, blasting a massive hole in its hull. The Kakamora ship instantly began taking on water.

Sora hooked one of the Arial Pirate's wings with his Keyblade and pulled it down, slamming it on top of the Burrfish and destroying them both. The other Arial Pirate glided up and punched Sora in the face, but Sora retaliated by slashing at it. Before either of them could attack again, there was suddenly the sound of a loud explosion, and the entire ship shook. Sora did not have to think long before realizing what happened.

Sora took advantage of the distraction and ended the Heartless with a stab, then leapt off the deck. He went into freefall as he careened back to the boat, landing unhurt back on it. He tossed the necklace back to Moana.

"I believe this is yours!" he called.

Both he and Kairi faced the Kakamora ship, which was rapidly sinking. The pirates were hopping in anger or abandoning ship.

"I assume you set off that canon?" Sora asked Kairi.

"Yep," Kairi said, brushing her hair back.

"Nice," Sora complimented.

"Who ordered them to fire?!" Captain Hook yelled at Smee.

Smee stepped back and stuttered. "N-n-no one, Cap'n. It just went off."

The pirate slammed his hook on the wood. "Dash it all!" he exclaimed. He fumed for a moment, then turned to Smee. "Let us withdraw, Mr. Smee. The Kakamora may have failed us, but we need to reach the Collector before those brats do! We need that item!"

"Retreat, Cap'n?" Smee asked.

Hook sighed. "Yes, retreat," he replied angrily. "For all our sakes."

Maui pulled the rope again, and the boat's sail caught the wind. It lurched forward, and suddenly sped out of the trap the bigger boats had caught them in. Kairi turned to look at Captain Hook's ship.

"Why aren't they chasing after us?" she asked.

Sora shrugged. "Maybe they've had enough?"

Kairi shook her head. "No, they're probably retreating after the Kakamora ship fell. If they're really here for the same reason Hades was in Gravity Falls, then that means we're the least of their worries."

Sora nodded and watched as _The Jolly Roger_ shrunk more and more, fading into the horizon as they sped away.

Moana opened her necklace and checked to make sure the Heart was still there. She sighed in relief when she saw that it was, and closed the necklace again.

"Well, that took guts, kids," Maui said. "And what do you know? We're there." He pointed ahead. Sora, Kairi, and Moana looked ahead to see a small island with a tall, thin mountain engulfing the entirety of the mass.

"That's where Tamatoa is?" Moana asked.

Maui shook his head. "No, that's how we get in. Tamatoa lives in Lalotai."

"Lalotai?" Moana gasped. "The Realm of Monsters?"

"The same one," Maui laughed.

Unbeknownst to the passengers on the boat, a small rowboat had gone off from _The Jolly Roger_. Hook eyed the island carefully as Smee rowed him closer.

* * *

The climb up the side of the mountain had been steep, but simple. Sora climbed up to the top, finding a flat top. It was covered in sand and stones, and provided a magnificent view of the surrounding ocean.

"Stand back," Maui commanded. Sora, Kairi, and Moana stepped back, and Maui suddenly began loudly chanting. He jumped into the air and slammed back down. Suddenly from beneath their feet, the ground opened up like a mouth. Below them was a massive dark pit.

"I'm going to go get my hook," Maui remarked. "See ya!" With that, he cannonballed down the pit. "Chee-hoo!" he yelled as he fell.

"So…" Kairi said, "do we follow him?"

"I'm going to," Sora replied. "I need to make sure that whatever Hook is looking for either isn't there or we get it before he does." Sora took a deep breath, then jumped down. Moana also took a deep breath, then followed. Kairi sighed, then hopped down.

The fall was much longer than any of them had anticipated, and suddenly they felt water as they splashed down. However, they were still falling through a vortex of color, and suddenly the water was no longer there. Sora saw ground beneath him and braced for impact, landing clumsily on the ground and rolling to safety. Moana landed harder, hitting the ground rather painfully. Sora reached out his arms and grabbed her as she stumbled forward.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yes, thank you," Moana replied.

Kairi landed next, landing on her feet but grunting loudly from impact. She stood up straight and looked around.

They were surrounded by color. Everywhere they looked was bright, neon purples and blues, with what looked like palm trees and giant sea anemones glowing around them. Geysers erupted around them, and behind them was a prominent, massive rocky structure made from sharp stones and what looked like massive clam shells.

"Where'd Maui go?" Kairi asked.

Sora pointed. "There," he replied. He motioned towards a large opening in the rocky structure with Maui's silhouette in it. "Come on!" He jogged towards Maui with Kairi and Moana right behind.

Maui turned to look as they approached him, confusion evident on his face.

"Wow," he said. "Mortals don't come down here."

"Let's just say that those other bad guys we saw might be coming here," Sora said. "If they are, we need to stop them."

Maui shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said. He peered inside the cave. Sora, Kairi, and Moana looked in as well.

Inside was a massive pile of golden treasures, surrounded by shining rocks and glowing plants. Every treasure imaginable seemed to be in the pile: coins, jewelry, seashells, swords, instruments, jewels, and a giant fishhook topping the pile.

"Is that your fishhook?" Kairi asked.

"Yeah," Maui said, seemingly amazed by his own possession.

"Well, let's go in and grab it," Sora said.

"You'll just wake Tamatoa up," Maui warned.

"I'll take that risk," Sora said, activating his Keyblade. "I should go first to make sure Hook isn't here."

"I'll go with you," Kairi said.

"Actually," Sora said, 'you should stick with Maui. If something goes wrong, you can help him get his hook."

Kairi paused to object, but could not fault Sora's logic. She simply nodded.

"You're just going to wake Tamatoa up," Maui said again. "If we're going to get my hook, we're going to need… bait."

* * *

Moana stepped out in the open, covered in seashells and shining gold dust. Sora followed, his Keyblade now Crown of Sun again.

"Wow," Moana said unenthusiastically, "a shiny, glittery cave! And just like me, it is covered in sparkly treasure!"

Sora waved his Keyblade back and forth. "Sparkle, sparkle, sparkle!" he called.

Moana turned to face Maui and Kairi, who were hiding behind a golden wheel.

"This is stupid!" she complained in a loud whisper.

"Just stick to the plan!" Maui responded. "And when he shows up, keep him distracted! Fight him! Get him to talk about himself! He loves to gloat!"

"You two must get along swell!" Moana retorted.

"Not since I ripped off his leg," Maui replied. He then waved Kairi along and the two disappeared.

"You what?" Sora asked, only turning around to see Maui and Kairi already gone.

Suddenly, the ground began to shake. Sora whirled around to see the pile of treasure moving upwards. Before he could even adjust his position to fight, he felt a tightness around his midsection. He looked down to see a massive purple claw clenched around his stomach. He glanced over and saw Moana trapped in the same way. The pile continued to rise, and a pair of massive eyes emerged from below, along with an evil laugh.

"Oh ho ho ho. What have we here?" an arrogant voice asked.

Sora realized that he was in the claw of a giant crab, and that the pile of riches was on top of the creature's shell.

"Humans?" the giant crab questioned. "What are you doing here in the Realm of the Monsters?"

Sora hit the claw with his Keyblade, but it seemed to have no effect. Moana tried to talk to him.

"We… humans… have heard about you, Tamatoa! We came to see the legendary crab!"

Tamatoa glared at them. "Are you just trying to get me to talk about myself?"

Sora pointed the Keyblade right at one of Tamatoa's massive eyes.

"Freeze!" he called.

The resulting Blizzard spell hit Tamatoa right in the eye, causing him to cry out and drop both Sora and Moana. Both landed relatively unhurt.

"Why you little-" Tamatoa yelled, slamming one of his legs down at Sora. Sora rolled out of the way, striking at the leg but doing no damage. Tamatoa slammed his claw down on the ground, creating a shockwave that knocked Moana and Sora back. Tamatoa grabbed at Moana, catching her in his claw and holding her up to his mouth.

"You look like seafood…" he mused as he opened his mouth, revealing barnacle-covered teeth. Moana yelped and kicked, trying to get away. Sora stood up and gasped.

"Hey, crab cake!" Maui's voice rang out. Tamatoa dropped Moana in surprise and looked back on his shell. Maui and Kairi stood on top, with Maui recovering his fishhook. He kissed it.

"I'm back," he said excitedly. "It's Maui time!"

"Well, well, well," Tamatoa said, shaking his shell. Maui and Kairi slid down, but jumped off and landed safely on a ledge. "Little Maui. You little semi-demi-mini-god." He clawed at Maui, and Maui swung his hook at the crab. However, Tamatoa grabbed the hook in his claw and tossed Maui into the air, making him hit the ceiling before falling back down to the ground with a thud.

Kairi jumped at Tamatoa, but he raised his other claw in her path. She struck the claw and fell to the ground, landing on one knee.

"You don't swing it like you used to, man!" Tamatoa mocked. He stomped at the ground with his legs, attempting to step on Maui, Moana, Kairi, and Sora. Moana and Sora dodged and Kairi got out of the way, and Maui reached for his hook.

"You can send your friends, but they'll never be enough!" Tamatoa gloated. He shook his shell, raining heavy golden treasures down on top of everyone. Moana covered her head as Sora and Kairi raised their Keyblades to block the attack. Tamatoa clawed down at Moana and grabbed her again, but threw her down in a cage of spiky plants. He then kicked Sora and Kairi at the same time with his multiple legs, throwing them back and skidding across the sand.

"My shell's too tough," Tamatoa remarked, tapping the golden pile to confirm his statement. He then kicked up the sand, clouding Sora and Kairi's view. He took the opportunity to step on Maui and drag him away from the hook, then slammed one of his massive claws right down on top of him, sending out another shockwave that pushed Sora and Kairi back, but cleared the sand.

Sora jumped forward and grabbed the hook, attempting to hand it to Maui. However, Tamatoa grabbed it at the same time and hoisted it and Sora up in the air. The crab threw the weapon on his shell again, along with Sora, who crashed painfully into the treasures.

Tamatoa laughed evilly and slammed his claw into the side of the cavern, causing debris to fall down. Kairi helped Maui up as the light coming from the top of the cave dimmed and the area went dark. As the light vanished, Tamatoa began to glow with bright blue and purple bioluminescence. He snapped his claws at Maui, but Kairi pushed him out of the way and was caught herself. Tamatoa held Kairi up and laughed.

"Kairi!" Sora called, standing up on Tamatoa's shell, struggling to keep his balance.

"Chasing the love of these humans that made you feel wanted?" Tamatoa laughed before throwing Kairi into a wall. Kairi screamed aloud as she struck the stone wall, tensing up from the painful impact. She fell to the ground, clenching her teeth.

"No!" Sora cried, jumping forward and lunging at the crab's eye stalks. Before he could hit them, one of the eyes turned and glared at him. Tamatoa reared up, sending Sora sliding back. He was forced to grip onto the shell to avoid falling off.

"Soak it in, because it's the last you'll ever see!" Tamatoa said. He began spinning in place, and every rotation grew faster and made it harder for Sora to hold on. He tightened his grip, but the shell was slipping. Suddenly, he could not hold on anymore and let go, flying across the chamber and striking the wall where Kairi had. He too yelped as he hit, and fell a few yards from where Kairi was recovering.

"Now I eat you!" Tamatoa called. "Prepare your final plea!"

Sora stood up, knees shaking, and helped Kairi stand up as well. They faced Tamatoa, dazed and hurt.

"You'll never be quite as shiny!" Tamatoa gloated, smiling wildly.

"Hey!" came Moana's voice. Tamatoa forgot about Sora and Kairi and whirled around to see Moana holding the Heart of Te Fiti in her hand. "I've got something shiny for you!" she called, waving the treasure.

Tamatoa was immediately fascinated. "The Heart of Te Fiti!" he gasped. "Give it here!" he demanded, charging Moana. Moana ducked down, but threw the heart into a small ravine in the sand. He did not even notice Maui get back up and jump onto his shell. Tamatoa began furiously digging at the sand, searching for his treasure.

"The power of creation… for a crustacean!" he mused. "Where is it? Where is it?"

Maui pulled the fishhook out, and slid back down the shell.

Kairi groaned as her body ached. However, she was able to reach into her back pocket and pull out the Potion from earlier. She extended it to Sora.

"Here," she groaned. "Take this."

Sora shook his head. "No, you take it."

"Take it," Kairi insisted. "I've still got some magic energy. I can cast a Cure spell on myself."

Sora paused, but took the Potion from her. He tossed it up in the air, causing it to glow green and vanish into a flurry of green sparkles that fell on him. He felt his strength begin to return, though his head and arm still hurt.

Kairi raised Destiny's Embrace and cast a Cure spell. She groaned and stretched her back, but was obviously feeling better.

"Come on," she said. "We need to go,"

Sora looked around. "What about Hook?"

Kairi shrugged. "I don't think anything up there was magical other than Maui's fishhook. If the artifact is on that shell and they want to challenge Tamatoa, I say good luck."

Sora smiled. "Let's go," he said. The two ran forward, meeting with Maui and Moana.

"What about the Heart?" Maui asked.

"Don't worry," Moana replied. "I've got a better one." She flipped open her necklace to reveal the Heart of Te Fiti. Everyone decided it was best not to ask questions, and followed her back out the hole in the cavern.

Tamatoa laughed as he gripped the treasure. "Finally!" he cried triumphantly. "I have the-" he then examined the object. "Oh I see," he said disappointed. "She's taken a barnacle and covered it in bioluminescent algae as a diversion." He growled as he smashed the barnacle, and gave chase.

* * *

Smee glanced over at his captain. "I don't think it's here, Cap'n," he muttered.

Hook was surprised. "Swoggle me eyes!" he said, scratching his head with his hook. "It isn't here! It wasn't on that brute's shell!"

Smee glanced back down as Tamatoa smashed a barnacle and turned to give chase. "Do we stay to get those Keyblade wielders, sir?"

Hook shook his head. "Neigh, Mr. Smee. If the item is not here, we have no reason to be either. But we can't return to… him… without it! He'll flail the hides right off of us! We need to retreat, Smee, and this time for good!"

Smee gulped. He had no idea what was making his boss so afraid, but it was almost as bad as the crocodile that had been pursuing them. He glanced down into the cavern.

"Well, should we gather some of that treasure before we set out?" Smee asked.

Hook paused. "Perhaps…" he considered.

* * *

Maui and Moana rushed out with Sora and Kairi behind. Suddenly, the cavern wall smashed down, and an enraged Tamatoa stepped out.

"Get back here!" he demanded.

"Go!" Sora called to Moana and Maui. He turned to face Tamatoa, and Kairi did too.

"There's only so far you can run on those two little legs!" Tamatoa called, thundering after them. When he saw Sora and Kairi standing up to him, he stopped in his tracks and laughed.

"You think you're tough?" he mocked. He swung his claw down at Sora.

Sora held up his Keybalde (which he had since switched back to Twisted Mystery) and blocked the blow. He maintained his footing, holding back the claw. He glanced next to him to see Kairi holding the other half of the claw back. Together, they threw the claw off and struck the joint, causing Tamatoa to recoil.

"Together we are," Kairi said.

Tamatoa growled and slammed his claws down to crush them. Sora and Kairi jumped out of the way and rolled underneath Tamatoa. Sora jumped up and used parkour to scale Tamatoa's leg, jumping off and slashing at Tamatoa's underside, causing him to cry out in pain. He stomped around attempting to step on one of them, but Kairi noticed one of his legs was missing. She jumped up, grabbed onto a bump on one of the crab's legs, and hoisted herself up until she was level with the wound. She cast a Fire spell, singing the area. Tamatoa yelled and hopped back, favoring the stub.

Kairi and Sora dropped back to the ground, then pointed their Keyblades at him. The tips of the blades began to glow, and two beams shot out and struck Tamatoa on the underside. The villain fell backwards, landing on his shell and sending golden treasures scattering.

"Now!" Sora said, jumping back. Kairi jumped back too, right on top of a geyser. It erupted as they landed, propelling them both upward and back towards the surface.

"Hey!" Tamatoa shouted. "Hey!"

Sora cheered as they rocketed back upwards.

Sora and Kairi breached the water, splashing back up onto the base of the island. Sora gasped for breath, and Kairi coughed. Kairi pumped her fist in the air.

"Yes!" she cheered.

Moana and Maui hurried over, still wet from their re-entry.

"That took guts, kids," Maui complimented, hoisting his massive hook over his shoulder.

Sora smiled. "So you have your hook back now. What does that mean?"

Maui smiled. There was a sudden flash of light, and Muai was gone, and a lizard stood where he was.

"Neat, huh?" Maui's voice said from the lizard.

Sora smiled as Maui transformed back to normal. "That's cool!" he said.

Moana grinned and opened her necklace, admiring the Heart. "So," she said. "Now on to Te Fiti."

* * *

Goofy handed Donald the wrench. Donald peered at the top, then over at Goofy.

"I said three-fourths, not five-eighths!" he quacked.

Goofy chuckled. "Sorry."

Donald wiped his brow as he handed the wrench back to Goofy. He plugged in some wires, then quacked curiously.

"What is it?" Goofy asked.

"One of the wires is completely destroyed," Donald replied. "We won't have communications back to Chip and Dale."

Goofy shrugged. "Is it a problem?"

Donald shrugged back. "Only if they try to contact us."

* * *

The sky had grown dark in the time they had been sailing. It turned out Maui was having some trouble shapeshifting, so he had been practicing for a while with Moana steering the boat. Sora and Kairi sat on the edge of the boat, looking out to the water, which was reflecting the stars.

Sora sighed and turned to look at Kairi. "Kairi?"

Kairi turned to look at him. "Yeah?"

Sora lowered his head. "I just want to say that I'm sorry for being angry at you and speaking to you the way I did. It was totally uncalled for."

Kairi scooted closer to him. "No, I'm sorry. I was the one who was consumed with the need for revenge… and then when you called me out on it, I got defensive. It's my fault."

Sora looked up at the stars. "No, it wasn't. It's the Darkness. It's been so powerful out in these worlds… so relentless. You're not usually vengeful, and I'm not usually wrathful. It was the Darkness bringing out the worst in us."

Kairi sighed and stared into the water. "My Heart wasn't strong enough to resist it. I don't have enough Light in my Heart."

"Don't say that!" Sora exclaimed. "I've seen your Heart. I've felt it. You're a Princess of Light, remember? That means your Heart has no Darkness at all. Even if you veer off course sometimes, you'll always end up back on the right track. And I know what real Darkness looks like. I've felt it. Seen it. Fought it. Been it…" Sora paused and recalled all the times he had fallen to Darkness: becoming a Heartless, being tricked by Xehanort…

Kairi looked up at the sky. "I've felt that kind of Darkness too. But what we're facing now… there's someone… or something… behind it."

Sora looked at her quizzically. "Oh?" he asked. "Who?"

Kairi shook her head. "I don't know," she replied. "But I feel it has something to do with that coffin we found, as well as the item Hades and Hook were looking for. And whoever… whatever it is, it is the most horrific thing I've ever felt. Xehanort may be full of Darkness… but what I feel… it embraces the Darkness in ways I cannot even begin to think of. It is… pure evil."

Sora stared at Kairi. He did not know how to respond. He felt the Darkness too, but had not sensed anything like what Kairi was describing. Just as he was about to respond, he had a thought.

"The coffin!" he said, slapping his forehead. "We forgot to ask Master Yen Sid about the coffin!"

Kairi shrugged. "Maybe we can contact him when we get back on the Gummi Ship."

Sora sighed. "Yeah, I guess so," he said. He smiled at Kairi. "Thank you for accepting my apology, Kairi."

Kairi smiled back. "You're welcome."

Unbeknownst to either of them, Moana and Maui had heard most of the conversation. They shot each other a glance.

"They're adorable," Moana mouthed. Maui nodded. Then he looked forward in front of the boat.

"We're here," he said aloud. "Te Fiti."

Moana, Sora, and Kairi all made their way to the front of the boat. Closing in was a large cluster of rocks. Mist and fog settled behind them, hiding the horizon.

Maui smiled at Moana. "Moana of Motunui, you have delivered Maui across the Great Sea."

Moana smiled, then opened her necklace and pulled out the Heart of Te Fiti. "Here," she said, "go save the world."

Maui eyed the Heart for a moment, then extended his hand around hers, closing her grip around the Heart.

"No," he said. "You'll help me. I think it's your turn to save the world."

Moana looked surprised, but happy and grateful. She returned the Heart to the necklace.

"Even though it will be very dangerous," Maui added quickly.

Sora chuckled. "Don't worry, we'll keep her safe."

Then Sora heard a rumbling. He looked forward again to see a ball of fire headed right towards them.

"Look out!" he shouted. He lurched forward and grabbed the rope, pulling it and allowing the boat to swerve just in time. The fireball collided with the water, splashing loudly and releasing a torrent of hot steam.

"Look!" Kairi shouted. She pointed at the rocks.

Sora looked back to see a massive humanoid figure rising from behind the rocks. It was made of lava and fire, and surrounded by clouds of ash and smoke arcing with electricity. It had wide, flaming eyes and a permanent glowing frown.

"Te Kā," Maui siad.

The lava monster shrieked at them and hurled another fireball. Maui lifted his hook, and batted it away when it hit, knocking it into the ocean.

"Sora! Kairi!" Maui shouted. "Make sure Moana is safe!" They nodded.

Moana scanned the rocks, looking for an opening. She saw one, but it was close to Te Kā. She turned the boat and started heading towards it.

Te Kā screeched as she placed her hands on the rocks. One of the rocks crumbled and her hand slipped into the water, dousing the flames and noticeably hurting her. She pulled her hand back, re-igniting it. The distraction allowed Moana to get the boat up to the gap, but Te Kā saw them and lunged down with her fist.

Moana gasped as the flaming hand came down at her, but Sora stepped in the way and pointed Twisted Mystery at the incoming hand. He quickly cast a Blizzard spell. When it made contact, Te Kā pulled her hand back and clutched it tightly, screaming in pain.

Kairi lifted Destiny's Embrace, and shouted "Wind!", casting an Areo spell. A sphere of swirling winds appeared around Moana as an elemental shield.

Te Kā screeched in fury as she hurled another fireball, this one striking the rocks and sending a wave of debris showing down at them. Moana screamed, but the rocks bounced off of her shield. Maui batted them away with his hook, and Sora and Kairi did the same with their Keyblades. The boat breached through the landslide to the other side of the rocks, revealing a large island in front of them.

"Te Fiti!" Moana called.

Suddenly, Te Kā erupted from the rocks, splashing the water. The boat overturned, and Sora and Kairi had just enough time to hold their breaths before going under. Sora reached out and grabbed Kairi's hand, and pulled her up to the surface. He, Kairi, and Moana breached about the same time. Maui had turned into a small fish, and transformed back. He jumped onto the upside-down boat and pulled Moana up out of the water as Sora and Kairi climbed up. Te Kā screeched again and reached for them.

"Maui!" Sora called. He nodded at the demigod, who grabbed him and threw him up at the lava monster. Sora somersaulted in the air over the hand, then slashed through the fire at the wrist, making the whole hand fall off. Te Kā recoiled again and stared in shock at her missing hand.

Sora began to fall, then suddenly stopped in midair. He glanced up to see a hawk holding his clothes in its talons. The hawk tossed him back onto the boat, then transformed back into Maui.

"You guys need to get over there!" he said. "I've got your back."

"But Maui-" Kairi started.

Maui chuckled. "Te Kā's gotta catch me," he said. He transformed into a small bug, then flew right up in Te Kā's face, with Sora, Kairi, and Moana watching. Moana's shield wore off.

Suddenly, Maui transformed into a giant whale, and careened down into the water. Massive waves splashed high into the air, soaking Te Kā and propelling the boat to the island. Te Kā re-ignited herself, then lunged at Maui. He transformed into a lizard and ran along her shoulder, then into a hawk, flying above her outstretched arm. He transformed back into himself for a moment before dropping down and cutting off the hand with his hook, causing her to scream again as lightning flashed in her clouds of smoke and ash. He transformed back into a hawk, but she swatted at him, knocking him back to his form and causing him to fall into the water. Te Kā regrew her hand, then launched another fireball at the boat.

"Incoming!" Kairi hollered. She and Sora faced the back of the boat as the fireball came closer. Kairi reacted first, jumping up and hitting the fireball with her Keyblade straight down into the water. Te Kā threw another, and Sora blasted it out of the sky with a Blizzard spell.

"Almost there!" Moana called.

Te Kā cupped her hands together, and formulated the largest fireball yet. Maui surfaced and gasped.

"Moana!" he called. "Get the Heart to the spiral!" He transformed back into a hawk, then back into himself as he jumped at Te Kā. Just as Te Kā was rearing back to throw the fireball, Maui struck her on her chest with his hook, creating a massive explosion that threw both of them back.

The boat reached the land, and Moana, Sora, and Kairi jumped off. Sora glanced back to see Maui. His hook was destroyed.

Moana and Kairi began climbing the rocks to get tot he other side. Sora jumped up and began to parkour up the sleek rock, grabbing Moana and Kairi's hands and pulling them up to the top. He ran to the edge of the rock and stopped. Moana ran next to him and gasped.

There was a massive silhouette on the ocean floor where the island should have been. It was in the shape of a woman lying down. But the island was not there.

"Te Fiti?" Kairi asked, concerned.

"She's… gone?" Sora asked.

Moana turned back to look at Te Kā. "I don't understand…" she said.

Te Kā reared up, hurt from Maui's attack. She stood up straight, revealing a spiral pattern on her chest. Moana opened her necklace and looked down at the Heart. She gasped as she made her realization.

"What?" Sora asked.

Moana did not answer; she simply walked back down towards the edge of the water.

"Moana!" Kairi called.

Moana reached the edge. The waves washed over her feet. She lifted the Heart above her head, allowing Te Kā to see its glow.

"Let her come to me," Moana said softly.

Miraculously, the ocean split before her, opening a path of sand and stone between Moana and Te Kā.

Sora began to hurry back towards her. "We need to help her!" he said. However, Kairi grabbed his arm.

"Wait," she said, watching closely.

Moana began slowly walking across the path. Te Kā saw her approaching and screeched, then proceeded to charge down the pathway at her.

Moana did not react. She continued to walk towards Te Kā, eventually stopping on top of a large, elevated rock. Then she began to slowly sing.

_"I have crossed the horizon to find you._  
_I know your name."_

Te Kā clawed at the ground, singing the sand as she approached. Sora tried to move again, but Kairi held him firm.

_"They have stolen the Heart from inside you._  
_But this does not define you."_

A dark cloud of ash and smoke enveloped Moana. As it cleared, Te Kā was right in font of her, staring down with rage.

_"This is not who you are._  
_You know who you are."_

As Moana stood defiantly in front of the monster, Te Kā's furious expression suddenly changed, as if she understood what Moana was saying. The fire dimmed, and the rocky, molten form of Te Kā leaned down as if to get a better view of the mortal that stood before her.

Moana stepped forward, and put her hand on Te Kā's face.

"Who you truly are," she whispered.

Te Kā shockingly settled. She closed her eyes and ent calm. Sora, Kairi, and Maui watched in amazement.

Moana stepped down off of the rock and extended the Heart, placing it on the spiral on Te Kā's chest. As soon as she did so, green began to glow from beneath Te Kā's rocky exterior. The clouds began to vanish, and the rocks and lava began to melt away. As they crumbled, another form was reveled underneath: a glowing, green woman, covered in foliage and an assortment of colorful flowers. She opened her eyes and smiled down at Moana.

"Te Fiti," Sora and Kairi whispered together.

Te Fiti lowered her open hand to Moana, who stepped in the palm. Te Fiti carried her over to the island of rocks where Sora and Kairi were, and gently set her down. Maui swam up to the surface and stepped next to Moana. Te Fiti leaned down to them. Maui bowed.

"Te Fiti," he said. "What I did… was wrong. I'm sorry."

Te Fiti eyed him for a moment, but then smiled. He extended her hand, revealing a brand-new fishhook in it. Maui leapt to his feet and gently took it. He raised it above his head and cheered, but Moana elbowed him. Maui cleared his throat.

"Thank you," he said, remembering who he was in the presence of, "your kind gesture is deeply appreciated."

Te Fiti smiled, then sat back up, only to lean back down to Sora and Kairi. Kairi bowed, and Sora followed upon seeing her do it.

"Te Fiti," Sora said sheepishly, "I apologize for attacking you."

Te Fiti did not respond, but lowered her hand down to them.

"I think she wants us to get on," Kairi whispered. Sora and Kairi stood up, and Sora cleared his throat as Te Fiti lifted them up. She carried them through the warm, salty air then dipped her hand over her bed on the ocean floor. Under the water, Sora could see the outline of a Keyhole.

"Oh!" Kairi said. "She was also protecting the Keyhole! When she lost her Heart, the Darkness was able to come through!" Te Fiti nodded in response to Kairi's observation.

Sora activated Twisted Mystery and pointed it at the Keyhole. A beam shot out and into the water. He could not hear the sound of it locking from the distance, but knew it was locked when the beam vanished and the outline disappeared.

Te Fiti extended her hand again, and displayed a series of gifts: several glowing Elixirs, two flower leis, and a perfect replica of Moana's necklace. Sora stared at the gifts in wonder. Kairi nudged him.

"It would be rude not to accept gifts from a goddess," she murmured. Sora chuckled and picked up the necklace, a lei, and a few of the Elixirs. Kairi grabbed the rest of the Elixirs and her lei. She put the garment on and bowed, prompting Sora to do the same.

"Thank you," Kairi said.

Te Fiti slowly lowered her hand, pressing it against the ground, letting the two off where Moana and Maui stood. She leaned back up and, with her audience watching, laid down in the ocean. Her human features seemed to fade as she was enveloped by plants life, and soon was unrecognizable as a luscious green island.

"Well, how about that?" Maui said, pushing away his hair. On his body, right above his chest, a new tattoo magically formed, showing Moana, Sora, and Kairi on the boat. Sora admired the tattoo, then activated his Keyblade. He switched out the Keychain with the necklace Te Fiti had given him, transforming the Keyblade into Radiant Horizon.

Moana wrapped her arms around Sora and Kairi, hugging them tightly.

"I can't thank you enough," she said. She squeezed tighter, then let go, still giddy with happiness. Maui stepped forward.

"You kids really helped. The world is safe now thanks to you two," he extended his hand and handed something to Kairi. He clicked his tongue at her. "In case you need me again," he said. Kairi examined the gift to see it was another Summon Charm, with the picture being of Maui's fishhook. She smiled at Maui sheepishly.

Maui turned to Moana, and the two shared a hug. Then, with the power of his magic fishhook, Maui transformed into a hawk and flew away cheering. Moana slowly boarded her baot and pushed off, beginning her long voyage back home. She turned back and waved goodbye to Sora and Kairi as she drifted off to sea. The two waved back.

Sora sighed. "I'm exhausted," he said.

Kairi nodded. "So am I," she replied. She glanced over to look at Sora, but did not see him. She looked down to see Sora laying down on the beach. She giggled.

"Get up, you lazy bum," she laughed. "We still have work to do."

Sora laughed as he closed his eyes and enjoyed the warmth. "You sound like when we were kids," he said.

Kairi slowly sat down next to him. "You forget, we still are kids."

Sora sighed. "Are we? So much has happened since then… it feels like so long ago…"

Kairi laughed as she admired her lei. "Well, we still have more worlds to go to, and we still need to contact Master Yen Sid about the coffin."

Sora sighed. "I know. But let's relax while we can. Besides, Donald and Goofy won't-"

A loud roaring of an engine startled him out of his sentence. He flashed his eyes open and sat up. Both he and Kairi looked up to see the Gummi Ship hovering overhead. The cockpit opened, and Donald and Goofy leaned out.

"Lollygagging, huh?" Donald quacked smugly.

Sora sighed. "Just a few more minutes?" he pleaded.


	8. Forces of Evil

Maleficent walked slowly down the corridor. She was trembling slightly, but tried her best to hide it. Pete walked alongside her, breathing heavily.

It had only seemed like a few moments ago that their master had given them their task, but in actuality, it had been quite a long time. Maleficent had gone to the world they were designated to search, but did not find what their master was looking for. However, they were both summoned back to the Villains' Vale, and were commanded to attend a special meeting.

The great doors swung open, and Maleficent did her best to calmly walk in. Both she and Pete were surprised to not see Captain Hook or Hades present, but several other figures hidden in shadows.

A throne of stone and skulls now lay before the round table, elevated above it to look down on the proceedings. On the throne sat the master, holding a goblet of blood-red wine in his gnarled fist.

"Maleficent," the master growled, not even acknowledging Pete, "take your place at the table."

Maleficent looked around at the other figures, only one of whom she recognized: a floating triangular being. The others she did not know; a tall man in a top hat, a woman wrapped in regal robes with a spiked crown, and a disembodied head in a crystal ball.

"Well well well well well well well!" the familiar figure said in a loud voice. "Maleficent, my old pal! Aren't you a sight for sore eye!"

Maleficent rolled her eyes. "Cipher," she said bitterly.

Bill Cipher began glowing in the darkness. "Did you miss me? Admit it, you missed me!"

Maleficent shrugged off the annoying triangle and turned her attention back to the master. "Where are Hook and Hades?" she asked.

The master slammed his drink down on the throne's arm rest, cracking a skull beneath. "They failed, and have deserted us," the master roared. "When we find what we are looking for, their worlds will be among the first to suffer. And they will experience pain unlike anything they could possibly imagine."

Pete gulped. Both he and Maleficent knew that the master could do what he said, and was certainly going to.

"Therefore," the master said, reclining back onto his deathly seat, "I am calling forth this, my New Council of Villains." The figures chuckled. "Now… to the reason I called you here… you are all aware of the item of which I seek."

Each head nodded.

"There are some that attempt to stand in our way. Yen Sid and the King's lackeys. Two of them are Keyblade wielders."

Maleficent's brows raised. "I may be familiar with them," she said. "Pesky brats, but formidable opponents."

"The very fact you believe that they are a threat makes you weak, Maleficent," the woman in the crown said.  
Maleficent eyed her angrily. "They slew Xehanort's Heartless and Nobody," she responded bitterly.

"Such is the power of the Keyblade," the woman in the crystal ball said in an echoing voice.

"Silence!" the master demanded. "They may be weak, but their Hearts are strong. Strong enough to be of use to me."

"And how would that be?" the man asked in a smooth voice.

The master tightened his fist around his goblet. "It is only a matter of time before that wretched Yen Sid discovers of my return. When he does, he will no doubt send his pawns out to find the artifact. They will lead us right to it," he said. The master gritted his sharp teeth. "Additionally, their Hearts will be the sacrifices when the artifact is obtained. Their Lights will be swallowed by the Darkness, and the already powerful artifact will become unstoppable."

"So what are we to do?" Maleficent asked.

"The artifact requires death," the master said coldly. "Go and return to your worlds. Kill all with Light in their Hearts. Consume the world in Darkness. Then, when the Keyblade wielders arrive, use them to find the artifact." The master leaned forward. "Then either destroy them or capture them to be sacrificed… to me."

Bill chuckled slightly. "They already came looking in my world. Wasn't there. But I know how consume the world in Darkness. That's what I was planning. I've been making deals."

"Deals work wonders," the tall man agreed.

"Use whatever means you deem necessary," the master commanded. "Do not hesitate to kill all in your path, because I will not hesitate to do the same."

"War comes in my world," the woman in the crown said. "Light will fall before my armies."

"I can conjure up a horrid band. A world of Darkness will be close at hand." the woman in the ball said rhythmically.

"No one can stop what I have planned!" Bill cheered.

The tall man laughed. "I have some friends I can talk to…"

Maleficent paused, but added in. "I shall send a flood of Heartless to many worlds… they will snuff out Lights."

Pete chuckled at Maleficent's claim. He's be standing with her every step of the way.

The master said nothing, but slowly sipped from his wine. The red liquid poured out of his rotted mouth.

"This meeting of the New Council of Villains is adjourned," he said.

* * *

Yen Sid flipped through the pages of the tome, eyeing each ancient writing and illustration. It had been quite some time since he had seen evil of this nature, and what he was seeing out in the worlds was too similar to it. His Heart grew heavy. He knew there was only one possible explanation now, but did not want to believe it. He had to make sure.

King Mickey walked in, rapping softly on the doorframe to signal his arrival. "Master?" he squeaked.

"Yes, Mickey," Yen Sid said, startled from his reading. "What news from the Guardian?"

Mickey stepped forward and looked at the ground. "No news. The Guardian passed away."

Yen Sid stood up, his seat scooting back as he bolted upright. "He did? When?"

King Mickey took a step back. "Three years ago. He fell ill."

Yen Sid turned around and looked out the star-shaped window with a worried expression on his face. "Then it is as I feared," he said slowly. He whirled back around to King Mickey. "We need to get Sora and Kairi back here immediately. They are no longer safe."

King Mickey looked up at his mentor with a confused expression. "Not safe? But he's still sealed away, isn't he? Besides, Donald and Goofy are with them…"

"They are no longer safe either," Yen Sid remarked. "Additionally, the mission they are on is no longer of the highest importance. We must contact them as soon as possible!"

King Mickey nodded. "Yes, sir," he said. Then he turned and ran out of the room.

Yen Sid sat down weakly back at his desk. He reached out and turned one last page of the black book, revealing a horrifying sketch of an evil figure standing next to an artifact of death.

"You are looking for it now, aren't you?" Yen Sid muttered.


	9. Strange Jungle

"What do you mean we can't contact anyone?" Sora asked, confused. "I thought you said you fixed this thing."

Donald tapped his foot. "We did. But the one Gummi wire we need to restore communications is completely obliterated. Everything else should work fine, but we won't be able to talk with Chip, Dale, Master Yen Sid, or His Majesty unless we go back."

Kairi glanced over at Sora. "Should we head back and get that repaired?" she asked.

Sora placed his finger and thumb on his chin. "I mean, we haven't really needed communications on this mission, and I'd hate to make the long trip back to the castle just to turn around and come back to finish. I think we'll be okay for now. We can head back once we're done, and tell Master Yen Sid about the coffin and get the communications repaired in the same trip."

Goofy shrugged. "I'm okay with that,"

Sora nodded and lowered his arm. "Alright then," he said. "To the next world!"

* * *

The entire time Sora flew the ship to the next world, he was thinking about the coffin for whatever reason. There was something about it that made him feel… cold. It was Darkness he had not felt since Xehanort. A chill ran up his spine. Deep down, deeper down than even he realized, he felt they should turn right around and warn Master Yen Sid about it. But he knew that was silly… right? Sora shook his head. It was probably nothing. Besides, Lightning had been investigating it. She could certainly handle herself.

"Sora, look!" Kairi said loudly, pointing out the front window. Sora snapped out of his thoughts and gazed ahead to see a familiar sight: beaches, small mountains, palm trees, a big ocean…

"Is that… home?" Kairi asked.

Sora gazed in confusion and curiosity. "It looks like the Destiny Islands," he said. "But that's impossible. The Destiny Islands are a long ways from here."

"Should we try to land?" Kairi asked.

"I don't know," Sora replied. "Donald?"

Donald looked at the instruments. A brief haze of static buzzed over the screen, and Donald slapped it to make it disappear.

"It says the next world is dead ahead," he quacked.

Sora stared ahead, not sure what to make of the sight. It certainly looked like the Destiny Islands, but it did not feel like the Destiny Islands. Sora braked, but inched slowly closer.

"It feels…" Sora began.

"…wrong," Kairi finished.

Suddenly, a massive gatling gun-like claw emerged from the side of the world. It dwarfed the Gummi ship as another appeared on the other side. Four crab-like legs sprouted, and the image of the Destiny Islands began to flicker.

"What's happening?" Kairi shouted.

"I don't know!" Sora replied.

Donald quacked loudly in alarm. "It's that giant Heartless from before! It's a World Mimic!"

The familiar sight of the Destiny Islands fades, and the massive Heartless revealed itself. It aimed its guns at the Gummi ship and opened fire.

"Fire back!" Sora shouted, twisting the controls and dodging the hail of fire from the World Mimic. Kairi jumped back to her station and began firing back, and Donald released a pulse. All of their shots connected, but did little damage to the Heartless' shell.

The World Mimic lurched towards the ship, stabbing at it with its sword-like legs. Sora weaved through the oncoming obstacles, but the last one struck the ship.

"Gawrsh!" Goofy exclaimed. "Half our shield is gone already! If it hits us agin, we'll crash again!"

Sora mumbled and grumbled under his breath. "Stupid, low-power piece of…" He turned the ship sideways, and Kairi opened fire on the leg that hit them. The shots penetrated the leg and blasted the entire limb off, making the World Mimic recoil in pain.

"Its legs are its weak spots!" Kairi shouted.

Donald nodded and fired another pulse at one of the Heartless' exposed legs, blowing it clean off. The World Mimic focused its guns and fired, striking the ship before Sora weaved out of the way.

"Shield at 25 percent!" Goofy exclaimed.

Donald fired another pulse, but it missed. "The computer still says the world is ahead of us!"

Sora peered past the World Mimic to see a green orb. He figured that had to be the world they needed.

"Hang on!" Sora shouted. "I'm going to try to confuse it. Kairi, Donald, keep shooting at its legs!" He yanked the controls, sending the ship flying up and over the Mimic's shell. It fired at them, but missed. Kairi and Donald fired down at the shell, but did little to phase the giant.

Sora crested over the massive shell, then suddenly dipped down so hard that Kairi had to grab onto her seat. Sora spun down underneath the Heartless, and looked up at its exposed underside and giant Heartless emblem. A pair of legs dangled below, stabbing at the open space.

"It's looking for us," Goofy examined. "It doesn't know where we went,"

"It's about to," Sora said. "Shoot those legs!"

Kairi and Donald opened fire on the limbs, blowing them off. The World Mimic arced its guns and fired down at them, but Sora veered the ship out of the way.

"Now what?" Kairi asked.

"Shoot the underside!" Donald said. He fired at the emblem, and Kairi followed. The World Mimic's underside flashed, and miniature explosions of light erupted from inside of it.

"Yes!" Sora cheered, pumping his fist up.

His celebration was too early. One of the Heartless' massive guns swung down and slammed the side of the ship, shaking it violently. Sora grunted as the ship tumbled, and the alarm started going off.

"We're out of shield, and one of the parts we just fixed has come loose!" Goofy cried.

"We're going to crash again!" Donald screamed.

"Not as hard this time!" Sora shouted. He hit the reverse thrusters to slow the ship down, but not stop it. The World Mimic shook violently for a moment more, then exploded in light and dark smoke.

Sora pushed the Gummi ship forward towards the distant world. As they approached, Sora saw that the entire world was almost completely covered by dense, deep jungle consisting of massive trees and vines. The two areas other than jungle he could make out were a tall stone temple overgrown with foliage, and a cluster of straw huts with a fence.

"Donald!" Sora called out. "Go help Goofy try and manage some of the power. Get as much of it as you can to slowing us down more or somehow shielding us!"

Donald was reluctant, but nodded and jumped from his station. He hurried to the other side and began working with Goofy, furiously pulling levers and pushing buttons. Kairi jumped to Donald's seat.

As they entered the outer edge of the world, Sora suddenly realized just how many trees there were. He hit the brakes, but they were still going very fast.

"Sora!" Kairi suddenly screamed in fear. "Look out!"

Sora could not react fast enough to the massive tree in front of them, towering over the rest. The Gummi ship struck it, and thundering crashing and metallic smashing was heard. Sora glanced around to see if everyone was okay. Then his blood froze and his Heart sank.

The ship had been cut in half, with him and Kairi in one half and Donald and Goofy in the other. Donald and Goofy shot a shocked and worried glance at him before both halves fell right out of the sky.

Kairi screamed and grabbed onto Sora, who wrapped his arms around her and activated his Keyblade, holding it out in front of him. He closed his eyes and braced for impact.

When they hit the ground, it actually was not as hard as they had crashed before. However, the landing was still by no means smooth, as they crashed hard down onto the jungle floor, jolting and shaking powerfully in the seats as they hit trees and rocks. With one final violent jolt, the Gummi ship came to a rest in a small cluster of tall trees.

Sora opened his eyes, and Kairi let go of him. Sora held his head, which was aching tremendously from the shaking. He unfastened his seat buckle, and felt the pain of a large bruise around his waist where the belt had been. Kairi groaned.

Sora looked over at her to see her holding her forehead. She winced at her own touch and rubbed her bruised knee with her free hand.

"Ow…" she moaned. She pulled her hand off of her forehead to reveal a slight trickle of blood running from her hairline.

"Kairi!" Sora said, scooting closer when he saw the blood. "Are you okay?" She nodded, but slowly.

Sora raised Radiant Horizon and cast a Cure spell on her. The blood stopped flowing as her injury was healed, and Sora wiped away the stray blood with the back of his glove.

"How about now?" he asked.

Kairi nodded again. "Better. But my head still hurts…"

Sora helped her to her feet and the two walked out of their half of the Gummi ship, bent and sparking.

It was nighttime in this jungle. The air was warm, but moist. The trees were spaced just enough to see the full moon above, glowing in solitude in the starless sky. The trees were massive, easily as big around as a large piece of furniture. Their leaves were dark in the night. The place was silent.

Sora sighed as he looked at the wreck they walked out of. "Well, now what are we supposed to do?"

Kairi placed her hand on her forehead again. "Donald and Goofy can fix it again, right?"

Sora shrugged. "Even like this? Probably. But we don't know where they are. We need to go look for where they landed."

Kairi started to step forward, but stumbled slightly. Sora reached down to catch her, but she steadied herself before she tripped far.

"I think you should sit down and rest," Sora said.

"I'll be okay," Kairi said.

"You will be," Sora said, "but not now. You should take a break. Maybe take a nap."

Kairi giggled. "I'm not as lazy as you are, Sora."

Sora chuckled too, then heard a rustling nearby. He glanced at one of the bushes just in time to see a pair of monkey-like Powerwild Heartless jump out and charge at them. Sora jumped between them and Kairi and batted one away as the other clawed his back.

"Sora!" Kairi yelled. She activated Destiny's Embrace and ran at the attacking Heartless, hitting it away with a few clumsy swings. Her head began to hurt again, and she stumbled back as she put her hand on head again, covering one of her eyes and attempting to regain her balance.

Sora slid at the other Powerwild, knocking it up into the air. Sora then stabbed at it in the air, destroying it. He turned around to see the remaining Powerwild creeping towards a dazed Kairi. Sora charged in and stabbed at it, pushing it into a tree. Sora then struck it with a wide slash, defeating it.

Kairi nodded. "Okay," she said. "Maybe I should sit down for a bit."

Sora smiled, then glanced around. Who knew how many more Heartless would be about? He scanned the treetops, checking for more enemies, when he saw one tree nearby with an exceptionally wide limb high above the ground. Sora pointed to it.

"Let's go up there," he said. "You'll be able to sit down, but you'll be safe from any ground Heartless."

Kairi looked up at the limb. "Can you get me up there?" she asked.

Sora smiled. He grabbed Kairi's hand, then began running at the tree, dragging Kairi behind him. She yelped, then ran and tried to keep up.

"Sora, can we slow down?" she asked.

"We need to be going fast!" he replied, the dirt and twigs crunching beneath his running shoes.

"For what?" Kairi yelled. Instead of and answer, Sora jumped up and began running up the trunk of the tree, pulling Kairi up. As soon as her feet left the ground, Sora grabbed her arm with his other hand and threw her upwards, launching her up the tree and letting her grab onto the limb. Sora adjusted himself to continue his vertical run, then propelled himself onto the limb. He reached down and grabbed Kairi's arm, pulling her up. Kairi sat where the limb connected to the tree, her legs straddling the branch and her hand on the top of her head. Sora stood on the other end of the limb, smiling triumphantly.

"Show off," Kairi scolded. Sora smiled wider.

"Get some rest," Sora said. "I'll be right back."

"Wait!" Kairi exclaimed, sitting up. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to scout around for Donald and Goofy," Sora replied. "If I can find them, we can work on putting the ship back together. They can't be far."

"You can't go alone!" Kairi said. "I'm coming with you." She began to stand up, but Sora eased her back down.

"Take it easy," he said. "I'll be fine. Will you be okay until I get back?"

Kairi nodded. "Yes Sora, I can look after myself," she said.

"Okay," Sora said, standing back up. "I won't go far. Just yell if you need me." He gave her a thumbs-up and a smile, then jumped out of the tree, rolling onto the ground below, and jogging off into the jungle.

Kairi sighed and leaned back. Her head was still aching, but not as badly. She was admittedly tired, and the brief relaxation on the beach in the previous world was seeming better by the second. She closed her eyes and tried to relax, unaware that a yellow pair of eyes had noticed her.

* * *

Donald quacked sadly as he mourned the beloved ship. He had just finished working on it, and now it was split in half! It seemed like all his hard work had gone down the drain.

"You alright, Donald?" Goofy asked.

"No," Donald said bitterly. "Let me down!"

Goofy chuckled at his friend, who had fallen out of the ship and was tangled in vines, and was now hanging upside-down a few feet off of the ground. Goofy pulled on some of the vines, which snapped and sent an angry Donald crashing to the ground.

"Where d' ya think Sora and Kairi are?" Goofy asked, looking around.

Donald grumbled as he got back up. "They have to be close; we didn't crash that far away from each other. But what about the ship? Without the other half, we'll never be able to fly this thing again."

Goofy leaned his head on his hand. "Well, if we find Sora and Kairi, we find the rest of the ship. Then we somehow drag the two pieces together, and you and I can start workin' on it."

Donald looked at the wreck. "This may be beyond even our capabilities to repair," he quacked.

"Nonsense!" Goofy cheered. "Remember Daybreak Town?"

Donald nodded. "You're right. This is nothing compared to that."

* * *

Sora slowed his pace, but kept a steady jog through the dense jungle. It reminded him of when he met Tarzan; a vast, quiet jungle overrun by growth. Everywhere Sora looked was life. There were clusters of bright pink flowers, large green ferns, thin, small trees dotted around, and red leaves hanging in clusters from the treetops. Large rocks were scattered about the jungle floor, big enough to climb on top of.

Sora entered a large bush, full of leaves and twigs. He pushed them out of the way or hacked through them with Radiant Horizon, then found himself in a clearing. He walked towards a large stone, then saw a curious sight: a young boy sitting next to one of the boulders, looking down at the ground and playing with a stick. He was a skinny child with tan skin, long black hair, and wore only a red loincloth. He glanced up at Sora in curiosity as Sora walked up.

"Hey," Sora said, kneeling down. "What's your name?"

The boy turned around and looked away. "It doesn't matter," he said.

Sora inched closer. "Are you out here alone?" The boy nodded sadly. Sora crooked his head. "What's wrong?"

"I have no friends," the boy said slowly.

Sora smiled his warmest smile. "I'll be your friend," he said. "I'm looking for my other friends. If you help me look for them, I'm sure they'll be your friends too."

"I'd rather be alone by myself," the boy said, though he turned around to look at Sora.

Sora smiled. "Well, everyone has to have friends. They help you and look out for you. They stand by your side, no matter how hard things get, and they always have your best interests in mind. In fact, I can take you to meet one of my friends, and she'd love to look out for you."

The boy stared at him, considering the offer. "Really?" he said.

"Sure!" Sora said. "Come on, I'll take you to go see her." He stood up and extended his hand. The boy looked at it for a moment, then reached out and grabbed it. Sora lifted him up, and the two began walking back the way Sora had came.

"So what's your name, kid?" Sora asked again.

"Mowgli," the boy replied.

* * *

Kairi adjusted herself on her seat. The tree was not the most comfortable place to be, but at least it was safe. She found herself appreciating the quiet of the jungle, as her headache had all but disappeared. She inhaled the warm night air, then exhaled out her mouth.

Unbeknownst to the girl, a figure descended from the treetop above her. It examined her with large, round eyes, then licked its lips as it came closer.

Kairi felt a presence. She opened her eyes and sat up. She was startled to see a large green snake staring at her. It smiled and slithered closer, suspended in the air by its coils up in the tree.

"Sssay now," the snake hissed, holding on its 's' as its forked tongue hung out. "What have we here? It'sss a man-cub."

Kairi was unable to tell if his animal was a friend or a foe, but she decided to play nice. "Hello," she said, smiling cautiously. "My name is Kairi."

The snake nodded. "Kaa. Pleasssed to make your acquaintanccce." He slithered closer to her. "What is a sssweet girl like you doing ssso deep in the jungle?"

Kairi straitened herself. The snake was friendly, but something about him was off-putting. "Right now I'm resting," she said. "Took a bit of a bad fall."

"Oh dear," Kaa said, arcing his neck. "Well, let me help you ressst…"

Kaa was getting a little close for comfort. Kairi placed a hand on his snout and gently pushed him back. "Thanks, but I'm okay…" she said.

"I insssissst," Kaa said, smiling. "Let me ssshow you…" As soon as he finished speaking, a strange phenomenon occurred. The pupils in Kaa's eyes seemed to vanish, and the yellow was suddenly replaced by spiraling rings of vibrant colors. There were rings of blue, green, purple, and yellow that pulsed throughout the snake's eyes.

Kairi was not sure what to make of the sight at first, but as she looked at the spirals, she suddenly felt a strange sensation wash over her. She locked eyes with Kaa and suddenly felt enamored by his eyes. Slowly her own pupils and bright blue irises disappeared, and her own eyes reflected the spirals.

"Yesss, man-cub, pleassse go to sssleep…" Kaa mused in a singsong voice, bobbing his head around and staring deeply into Kairi's now-spiraling eyes.

Kairi kew something was wrong, but that feeling was slipping from her. When Kaa bobbed his head, she followed, intent on keeping her gaze fixated on the spirals. She began to feel… peaceful. Relaxed. Blissful. There was a calming effect to Kaa's spirals. Even her headache was gone.

"Ressst in peaccce…" Kaa hissed mischievously. From the treetops came Kaa's other end: his thin tail, followed by a mass of thick coils. The tail wrapped itself around Kairi's waist, and then traveled up, wrapping her in the coils. Kairi felt the coils pin her arms to her body, but did not mind. In fact, the coils felt soft and relaxing. She was finding it harder and harder to stay awake, but she still wanted to stare at Kaa's eyes.

Kaa continued to wrap Kairi in his coils, coiling up until his tail traveled up her chest and around her shoulders. Kairi fought to keep her eyes open, as she was falling asleep from the relaxing bliss, but was still enamored by the hypnotic spirals.

One small portion of her still understood what was happening was wrong, but it was almost completely silenced. Just before it faded, she remembered what Sora had told her.

"S-S-Sora.." she tried to call out. However, Kaa's coil had reached her neck, and tightened itself around it, cutting off Kairi's plea. Kairi choked slightly, but was eased back down into bliss by the spirals. The calming relaxation grew too pleasurable. Kairi smiled happily, totally overcome with the comfort of the coils and the soothing of the colors.

Kaa chuckled as he admired his catch, who was smiling widely and staring off into nothingness with rapidly spiraling eyes. Kaa lifted Kairi into the air and wrapped a few coils to hold her legs, then closed his eyes and opened his mouth, preparing to swallow Kairi whole.

* * *

Sora and Mowgli walked into the clearing. Sora pointed up into the tree.

"She's up there," he said to the young boy. "Let me go up and get her." He smiled at Mowgli, then ran up the side of the tree like he had earlier he swung up the branches and landed softly on the limb where Kairi was.

"Hey Kairi-" Sora started. Then he froze. Kairi was wrapped in the coils of a massive python, her eyes spiraling with colors and her mouth turned up in an entranced grin. The snake had its large maw open, and was slowly drifting Kairi towards it.

"Hey!" Sora yelled, activating his Keyblade. "Hold it! Stop!" He ran forward and rammed his Keyblade into the snake's head, slamming it upwards and striking a branch above. Kaa fumbled his coils and dropped Kairi, but her fall was cushioned by the coils and she remained in her hypnotic trance.

Kaa shook his head. "Ow…" he seethed, "my sssinusss!" He turned to face Sora with a look of fury on his serpentine face. "You have just made a ssseriousss missstake, boy. A very ssstupid missstake."

Kaa raised the end of his tail and struck at Sora like a whip. Sora blocked the blow, but the tail wrapped around his Keyblade. Sora pulled to release his weapon from the snake's grip, but Kaa slithered close to him and lit up his eyes with spirals before him.

While Sora did not know what the spirals were, he had seen them in Kairi's eyes and thought it best to avoid them. He closed his eyes, but not before catching a glimpse of the enticing colors. He tugged on his Keyblade, but Kaa held it tight.

"Look me in the eyesss when I'm ssspeaking to you!" Kaa demanded. The brief look at the spirals was all Sora needed to be susceptible to the hypnotic suggestions, but he struggled nonetheless. He tried to avoid giving in to what was being asked of him, but he opened one eye to see.

In his limited vision, Sora saw nothing but colorful spirals. His pupil and iris vanished, and his single eye reflected the rings. A sensation swept over his body as he looked: one of relaxation, bliss, and obedience. He could not take his eye off of the display before him.

"No…" Sora stammered, still doing what little he could to resist the mind control.

"Both eyesss, if you pleassse!" Kaa hissed angrily. Sora tried to resist, but the command had been given, and he was compelled to obey. Sora opened his other eye, and it immediately filled with spirals. At this point, Sora was too far in trance to think of much else besides obedience and pleasure. His Keyblade deactivated and his arms fell limp to his sides. His eyes spiraled rapidly as he was overcome with the feeling of happiness and calm. He smiled goofily, then stood straight as he stared into Kaa's hypnotic eyes.

"You have just sssealed your doom," Kaa said menacingly as he wrapped his tail around Sora's waist, intending to trap him the same way he had with Kairi.

However, neither Kaa nor Sora had noticed Mowgli clumsily climb up the tree. He gasped quietly when he saw the two Keyblade wielders entranced, and took advantage of Kaa being distracted by Sora. Mowgli climbed over to where Kairi was sitting hypnotized and slapped her gently a few times on the cheek.

It took a few attempts, but Kairi suddenly and startlingly woke from her hypnosis. She blinked a few times as the bliss and relaxation faded, and she was brought back to consciousness. She blinked a few times, allowing the spirals to fade and her natural blue eyes to return.

"Wha-" she started, but Mowgli cupped his hand over her mouth. He gestured at Kaa, who was taking delight in the fact that he was about to either squeeze the life out of Sora, devour him, or both.

Kairi hushed and let Mowgli remove his hand. She activated her Keyblade and snuck up behind Kaa. When she was close enough, she swung and struck him on the back of the head. Kaa yelped as he was struck forward, stumbling into Sora and pushing him down onto the branch. The impact snapped Sora out of his trance, though he took a few seconds to let the spirals fade and clear his head.

Kaa whirled around with spiraling eyes, but Kairi averted her gaze and slashed at the snake. Kaa dodged, then slapped at her with his tail, almost knocking her off the branch. Kairi put her arms out to keep her balance, and Kaa leaned in to look into her eyes. However, just as Kairi was beginning to feel dizzy, Mowgli suddenly jumped forward and punched Kaa in the snout.

"Ow!" Kaa grunted. "Ssstupid man-cub!" He quickly whirled around Mowgli, wrapping a pair of coils around the boy's arms and pinning them to his body. He stuck his face right in front of Mowgli, whose eyes reflected the spirals back as he began to smile.

"Oh no you don't!" Sora yelled, activating Radiant Horizon again and bringing it down on Kaa's head. Kaa yelled in pain and surprise as Kairi freed Mowgli from the villain's coils and shook him, waking him from hypnosis.

Kaa turned to face Sora again and snapped his giant mouth at him. Sora held out his Keyblade in the nick of time, and Kaa bit down on it instead. He eyed Sora with his hypnotic eyes, and Sora felt bliss wash over him again as his eyes began to spiral again and he began to smile.

Kairi and Mowgli, however, grabbed onto Kaa's exposed pile of coils and pushed them out of the tree. Just as Radiant Horizon disappeared from Kaa's mouth and Sora fell limp again, Kaa suddenly felt himself being dragged downwards. He shouted in surprise as he was pulled back, his head slamming into branches as his body twisted and plummeted through the tree and collapsed to the ground in a pile, his head following suit.

Mowgli laughed out loud at seeing Kaa's deserved defeat, and Kairi could not help but chuckle as well. She turned to look at Sora, who was still standing at attention with his arms at his sides, his eyes a flurry of colors and a silly grin on his face. Kairi had to laugh at the sight, but walked over and shook Sora gently, causing the spirals and smile to fade as Sora woke up.

"What?" Sora said, dazed and confused. He rubbed his eyes. "Did that jerk seriously get me again?"

Before Kairi could respond, she was interrupted by yelling from below.

"Just you wait until I get you all in my coilsss!" Kaa hissed, furious and glaring up at them with narrow yellow eyes. He began to slither away, but was caught. He looked back to see his tail tied in a knot and caught on a pair of plants.

"Look, Sora!" Mowgli exclaimed in delight. "He has a knot in his tail!"

Kaa repeated him sarcastically. "Hee hee hee, he hasss a knot in hisss tail!" He pulled until the knot came undone, then slithered off clumsily into the brush, grumbling angrily to himself.

Sora regained his composure, then introduced Kairi to Mowgli. "Kairi, this is Mowgli. Mowgli, this is my friend Kairi."

Mowgli just waved.

Kairi smiled. "Thanks for saving us, Mowgli," she said sweetly. "He was a nasty piece of work."

"Man-cub!" a voice shouted, fast approaching. "Man-cub!" Sora and Kairi were startled by the sudden appearance of a large black panther, who came to a halt before them. Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades.

"Bagheera!" Mowgli said, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

The panther walked up to Mowgli slowly and with no sign of hostility. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left you alone." He faced Sora and Kairi suspiciously. "Who are they?"

Sora stepped forward, deactivating his weapon. "I'm Sora, and this is my friend Kairi."

Bagheera eyed them curiously, but settled down. "I see. And how much trouble has my little friend gotten into?" he asked.

"None!" Mowgli pouted.

Kairi shrugged. "Actually, he saved us from a nasty snake that wanted to eat us."

Bagheera shook his head. "Kaa. Foul serpent." He scanned the jungle floor for a minute, then looked up at the sky, then back down to them. "You wouldn't have anything to do with that ruckus that drew me here, would you?"

Sora hesitated, not wanting to meddle by informing the panther of other worlds. Fortunately, he did not have to.

"Because I seemed to have seen some other unfamiliar characters in this part of the jungle," Bagheera said.

Sora perked up. "Really?" He asked. "Do you know where they are?"

The panther nodded. "Yes, I can lead you there. Mowgli, I suggest you come with us. Ride on my back."

"But Bagheera…" Mowgli started.

"Just for now, to keep you safe," Bagheera added. "We can argue later." Mowgli sighed and hopped onto the panther's back. "Follow me," Bagheera said, jumping down out of the tree. Sora took Kairi's hand and lowered her to a vine, which she slid down. Sora grabbed another vine and swung down to the ground. Bagheera waited until the two were behind him, then took off with a steady pace through the foliage. Sora and Kairi had to jog to keep up with him, but kept him in their line of sight. He jumped expertly over the rocks and other small obstacles dotting the way, and ducked his head to avoid large leaves or low-hanging fruit. Sora and Kairi weaved through the jungle after Bagheera, with Mowgli taking the occasional glance back at them.

A few minutes later, Bagheera began to slow down. Sora and Kairi slowed as well, and Bagheera pushed into a clearing, where Donald and Goofy were talking to each other. They jumped with a start when Bagheera entered the clearing, but settled when they saw Sora and Kairi behind.

"Sora! Kairi!" Goofy exclaimed. They all ran to greet one another.

"Are you alright?" Donald asked.

Kiari nodded. "Yeah. Can't say the same for the ship, though."

Donald shook his head. "We just finished fixing it, too."

Sora put a hand behind his head and chuckled, embarrassed. "I don't suppose you'd be able to fix it again, would you?" he asked.

Donald nodded slowly. "We can. But it'll take even longer than it did before."

"For obvious reasons," Goofy added.

Sora nodded. "The other half is a few minutes in the direction we came. We can go collect parts for you."

Goofy shook his head. "Gawrsh, you just leave it to us. Donald and I will take care of it. You two can go look for the Keyhole."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?" she asked.

Donald nodded again. "Yeah. Go on, we got this… again."

"Well," Bagheera said. "Now that you have your affairs in order, may I speak with you two?" He gestured towards Sora and Kairi. Mowgli was preoccupied following a butterfly, so the three were able to wander into the foliage unseen.

"What is it?" Kairi asked.

The panther shook his head. "It's a bit of a long story, but I'll explain it the best I can. I found Mowgli as a baby in this jungle, alone and helpless. I gave him to the wolf pack, who raised him as one of their own. However, the jungle is no longer safe for him."

"How so?" Sora asked.

"Shere Kahn, the tiger," Bagheera replied. "He hates man. He will not allow Mowgli to grow up to be a threat to the jungle. He has sworn to kill the boy. On top of that, ever since he returned to this part of the jungle, monstrous animals have been appearing all over the jungle."

Kairi nodded. "Well, we can get rid of the monsters," she said. "And if we can tell Shere Kahn that Mowgli means him no harm…"

Bagheera shook his head again. "No one explains anything to Shere Kahn. You two are older, more capable. You can hold your own. But Mowgli is just a child. He needs to go back to live with his own kind."

Sora nodded. "That would be the best option."

"But he refuses to go," Bagheera said. "Every time I try and take him there, he runs away. He won't listen to me. But you two he might."

Kairi crossed her arms and looked at the ground. "What do you need us to do?"

"Try and convince him," Bagheera said. "He might change his mind if he hears it from friends other than me."

Sora nodded. "We'll do our best." He sighed, then gazed up. The nighttime sky was beginning to brighten as the first rays of the sunrise began to creep over the foliage.

Sora, Kairi, and Bagheera wandered back to the clearing. Goofy and Donald were hauling some Gummi pieces over to the wreck. Mowgli was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Mowgli?" Kairi asked.

Donald pointed through some trees. "He wandered over there."

Bagheera groaned. "He shouldn't be alone. We need to go find him."

Sora and Kairi nodded in confirmation and jogged in the direction Donald had pointed them. Bagheera hurried next to them, sniffing the ground for the boy's scent.

Suddenly, Sora felt something strike the side of his head.

"Ow!" he shouted, cupping the area. He rubbed it slightly, then looked up to see a Bouncywild Heartless on a stump, clutching a slingshot. It giggled, then jumped off of the stump. As Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades, two Powerwilds emerged from the brush and stood beside the Bouncywild. Five Green Requiems materialized above them.

Sora charged in, preparing to swing his weapon. The Bouncywild jumped back, and the Powerwilds jumped forward. They clawed at Sora viciously, but Sora blocked their attacks and hit them both back with a single wide swing. However, as soon as the Powerwilds hit the ground, The Green Requiems hovered over them, casting Cure spells that restored the Heartless' strength.

The Bouncywild jumped onto a low-hanging tree branch and aimed its slingshot, charging it up as it locked onto Sora. Just as it fired, Kairi rushed in and hit the shot back to sender. It collided with the Bouncywild and destroyed it in a single blow.

Sora jumped up and began an arial combo on two of the Green Requiems, striking them repeatedly. As he landed back on the ground, the Powerwilds charged him. Sora managed to stab one and toss it away, but the other closed in. Just before it attacked, a blur of black tackled it. Bagheera stood on top of the Heartless, growling as he clawed at it, destroying it. Sora nodded appreciatively to him, then pointed his Keyblade at the Green Requiems.

"Force!" he said, casting a Gravity Spell. A black and purple orb formed around the Heartless, dragging them violently down and crashing onto the jungle floor.

Kairi ran her Keyblade through the last Powerwild as Sora finished off the Green Requiems. He stood straight and stretched his back and arms.

"I need a break," he groaned as he stretched.

"Quickly!" Bagheera said. "Mowgli couldn't have gone far."

Kairi smiled at Sora, who sighed that he could not stop to take a breath. The two followed the panther through the thick plant life and up the face of a boulder.

Suddenly, the silence of the jungle was broken by a loud roar nearby. Sora, Kairi, and Bagheera stopped to listen. The sun was now completely over the jungle, painting the sky blue and filling the once dark jungle with light.

"Hurry!" Kairi said, urging them all forward towards the roar. The three of them climbed the rock and made it to a large tree fallen on its side. They all walked on top of it and looked down into a clearing.

Mowgli was there, and with him was a massive grey bear. They were moving around each other, swinging their limbs.

"That's it, that's it!" the bear cheered. "Keep on your toes!"

Though Sora and Kairi were relieved that Mowgli was not in any danger, Bagheera crumpled down onto the log in what looked like defeat.

"Oh no!" he cried. "It's Baloo! That shiftless, stupid jungle bum!"

"Weave about now!" the bear called. "Look for an opening! Keep moving, keep moving! Now you're getting it, kid!" The whole time, Mowgli was throwing soft punches towards the animal. "Come on, keep circling or I'm gonna knock your roof in again. Betting keep moving!"

Mowgli threw a punch up, hitting Baloo right on the jaw. Ballo smiled and rubbed the spot, laughing. "Hey!" he said. "Right on the button!" Baloo then over-dramatically swayed before falling on the ground, playing dead.

"Just what he needs, more confidence," Bagheera grumbled. Still, he could not help but smile.

Sora smiled and jumped down off of the log. He walked up to Mowgli. "Say, you're not a bad fighter, kid," he said. Mowgli grinned and puffed his chest out.

Sora reached onto the ground and grabbed a large, hearty stick that had presumably fallen from one of the tall trees. He tossed it to Mowgli, who fumbled with it for a moment before catching it. Sora activated Radiant Horizon, and took a defensive stance.

"Okay, Mowgli," Sora said, gripping his weapon. "I want you to hit me with that stick, alright? Don't hold back, either. Don't let me block."

Ballo sat up to watch, and Kairi sat on the log next to Bagheera. Mowgli gripped the end of the stick in a way that mimicked Sora, and began to circle. Sora followed his movements, ready for whenever the boy would make a move.

Mowgli swung at Sora's side, and Sora held up his Keyblade and blocked the attack, parrying it back. Mowgli's attack was slow and predictable, but Sora was going easy anyway. Mowgli stabbed at Sora's gut, and Sora batted his stick away. Mowgli began rapidly swinging, and Sora had to increase his tempo to block each of the oncoming strikes. However, he blocked each one. He was just about to end the fight when Mowgli stabbed forward and poked Sora in his ribs. Sora laughed, then lowered his Keyblade and deactivated it.

Kairi applauded the show she just watched. "Bravo, bravo!" she cheered. "You would be an excellent Keyblade wielder, Mowgli." Mowgli beamed with pride as he tossed away his stick.

"Yeah, kid," Baloo said. "You're not bad. How about you come and hang with ol' Baloo?"

"Nonsense!" Baghhera said, standing up. "I'm taking him to the man village."

"The man village?" Baloo scoffed. "But they'll ruin him! I'll take care of him. I'll learn him all I know."

"Well that shouldn't take too long," Bagheera remarked.

Sora walked back over to Kairi. "I have a feeling this might get heated," he whispered.

"Should we say anything?" Kairi whispered back.

Sora shook his head. "No, we'll let them figure it out."

As Bagheera and Baloo argued, Mowgli leaned up against a tree and began scratching his back on it, unaware that something was watching him from above.

"…and furthermore, Baloo, Mowgli seems to have mankind's ability to get into trouble," Bagheera said. He looked at Sora and Kairi. "No offense."

"None taken," Sora replied, glancing to Kairi.

"Oh, stop worrying, Baggy," Baloo said. "I'll take care of him."

While all attention was diverted from Mowgli, a pair of paws reached down and cupped over his mouth. Several more paws grabbed him and hoisted him up into the tree. Mowgli kicked and struggled, but only managed to free his mouth.

"Hey! Let go of me!" he shouted.

Sora, Kairi, Bagheera, and Baloo all turned to where Mowgli was. Upon not seeing him there, they looked up. Sora saw at least a dozen Powerwilds holding Mowgli tightly, swinging him between each other as Mowgli kicked and shouted. They tossed him from one Heartless to the other, escorting him through the trees.

"Hey!" Baloo shouted, giving chase. Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades and followed, and Bagheera jumped into a nearby tree and began following them through the treetops. Just as the panther started to gain on them, a projectile launched from a bush and hit him on the head, knocking him out of the tree and down to where Baloo, Sora, and Kairi were.

"Baloo, help!" Mowgli shouted as the Powerwilds carried him away. Four Bouncywilds and a large, black, snake-like Creep Coil descended from the treetops.

"Why, I'll rip you limb from limb!" Baloo shouted, charging at them. One of the Bouncywilds threw a banana peel, and Baloo slipped on it, landing on his back with a loud thud. The Bouncywild then charged up a shot, but Sora rushed in and began rapidly striking it until it was defeated.

"Girl!" Bagheera called, motioning towards his back. Kairi jumped on top of the panther as he ran at the Heartless, riding him into battle. As Bagheera jumped at a Bouncywild, Kairi jumped off and hit the Creep Coil several times in the head. She straightened her body out to fall, but felt the Heartless coil around her, pinning her arms to her sides. Kairi kicked as the Creep Coil moved its head in front of her and hissed loudly, showing off two massive fangs.

"You put her down!" Baloo shouted, standing up. He charged the Creep Coil and grabbed it by the neck and bottom coil, yanking it off of Kairi. He tied the writhing Heartless in a knot, then tossed it to Kairi. Kairi readied her Keybalde like a baseball bat and struck the Creep coil so hard she sliced right through it, destroying it.

"Thanks, Baloo," Kairi said.

Baloo nodded. "Any friend of Mowgli is a friend of mine."

Bagheera bit down on another Bouncywild, destroying it. The remaining two aimed their slingshots at Bagheera and Sora.

Kairi rushed in at hit one of the Bouncywilds to Sora who hit it back to her. Kairi send it right back, and Sora brought his Keyblade down on top of it, killing it. Baloo swiped at the last Heartless, slamming it into a tree and causing a large fruit to fall on top of it, destroying it.

Sora scanned the treetops. "We lost him!"

Bagheera looked ahead. "Judging by the direction they were going… I have a pretty good idea where they're taking him. The ancient ruins. And I hate to think what will happen when he meets that king…"

"Well, let's go after him!" Kairi said, holding up Destiny's Embrace. "Lead the way, Bagheera!"

The panther nodded. "Follow me!" he called, taking off into the jungle.

* * *

The ancient ruins were the overgrown remains of a massive stone temple. Three decrepit towers loomed over the jungle trees, and the vines and leaves spiraled around columns and statues of animals. Heartless prowled in the dark corners of the ruins, with Powerwilds and Bouncywilds treading the fallen walls, Creep Coils wrapped around ancient supports, and Shadows darting from corner to corner. In the collapsed and brightly lit area that was once the throne room, a large ape sat on the stone throne, scatting to himself while lazily scratching an itch on his stomach. The sound of yelling caught his attention, and he looked up happily to see the Powerwilds dangle a kicking and squirming boy in front of him.

"Let me go!" Mowgli shouted.

The ape peered at the boy. "So you're the man-cub?" he said with a toothy grin. "Crazy!"

"I'm not as crazy as you are!" Mowgli shouted. The Powerwilds dropped him, and the ape grabbed his arm.

"Cool it, kid," he said in a mellow voice. "Unwind yourself."

"What do you want?" Mowgli demanded.

"Word has reached my royal ear that you want to stay in the jungle," the ape said, setting Mowgli down on one side of his throne.

Mowgli was intrigued. "Stay in the jungle? Sure, I do, but…"

"Well then," the ape said, hopping energetically. "Ol' King Louie…" he pointed at himself, "…that's me, can fix it for you. Have we got a deal?"

Mowgli nodded in his naïveté. "Sure. I'll do anything to stay in the jungle."

* * *

Bagheera led Baloo, Sora, and Kairi to the ruins. Sora hopped up on a stone and scouted around. He saw a Powerwild crawling on one of the pillars, and took it out with a quick Fire spell. There was no opposition after that, and soon the four of them were on a balcony overlooking the throne room.

"Now, here's your part of the deal, 'cuz," King Louie said, grabbing Mowgli's head and leaning in. "I like these monsters that have been popping up. I can control some of 'em. But I'm a king. I should control all of 'em! So lay the secret on me: where is the Keyhole?"

Mowgli was confused. "I don't know anything about a Keyhole."

King Louie's nearly perpetual grin faded, and a look of disappointment and frustration rested on his face. The ape grabbed Mowgli by the hair and hoisted him up.

"Now don't try to kid me, man-cub!" he said. "I made a deal with you! Pay the toll, reveal the Keyhole, and make my dreams come true!" He threw Mowgli up and grabbed him by his leg, dangling him upside-down. "So give me the secret, man-cub! Come on, clue me what to do! Give me the might over Darkness and Light and I'll make it up to you!"

Sora clenched his fist. "The Keyhole! He's after it too!"

Kairi shook her head. "If he's working with these Heartless, then that means he'd cause serious trouble if he found it."

"I have an idea," Bagheera said. "You create a diversion, and Baloo and I'll rescue Mowgli. Got it?"

"Got it," Sora said, activating Radiant Horizon. Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace, and they both made their way across the balcony. Baloo and Bagheera snuck the opposite direction.

Sora stopped and leaned against the wall, thinking. "How are we going to approach this?" he thought aloud.

"What do you mean?" Kairi asked. "We go down there, we take out that ape and those Heartless, and Bagheera and Baloo rescue Mowgli."

"It's not that simple," Sora pondered. "As soon as that King Louie sees us, he'll hand Mowgli off to the Heartless and they'll swing away with him again."

"Good point," Kairi said. "We'll have to take out all the Heartless without the king seeing us."

"Easier said than done," Sora said. "I can sneak up on a few of them, but with so many around and in so many various locations, we're sure to be seen by at least one that will sound an alarm."

Kairi leaned against her Keybalde, then stood straight. "Wait a minute!" she said. "You said that King Louie could hand Mowgli off to the Heartless in the trees, and they'd carry him away, right?"

"Right," Sora said.

"Well, then those are the only ones we need to worry about," Kairi said. "As long as we take out the Heartless in the trees and on the tops of the walls, and keep any others from going that high, the only thing they'd be able to do is go on foot. And we can get them when they're on the ground."

"Good thinking!" Sora cheered. "But how are we going to get up there?"

"We don't have to!" Kairi explained. "A few well-placed Gravity spells will send them all right down to where we need them!"

Sora patted Kairi on the back. "That's genius. Will we have enough magic for them all?"

Kairi reached into her inventory and pulled out an Ether. "If we run out, we can replenish it with this."

"Good thinking," Sora said. "Let's go."

Sora and Kairi crossed the balcony and made their way to a spot where they had a clear view of the Powerwilds, Bouncywilds, and Creep Coils in the trees and ruins above their heads. Sora and Kairi glanced at each other and nodded, then held up their Keyblades and pointed them both at the treetops.

Suddenly, there was a hiss. Sora turned to see a Creep Coil approaching them. Sora quickly dropped his Keyblade and swung it into the Heartless' neck, slamming it to the stone floor. It attempted to coil him, but Sora spun around in a whirlwind motion, striking all the incoming coils back, and finished the monster off with a quick stab through the head.

"That was close," Sora panted.

"Too close," Kairi agreed.

Sora took his position again, and pointed his Keyblade at the treetops.

"Ready?" Kairi asked.

Sora nodded. "Set…" he said.

"Now!" Kairi called. The two cast a series of Gravity spells not seconds apart from each other on the treetops and upper ruins. The leaves rustled and the branches groaned under the magic, but the Heartless were sent plummeting to the ground below.

King Louie had Mowgli by the ear, and was ready to get nasty to ensure he got what he wanted. Suddenly he was startled by something striking the ground next to him. He jumped and released Mowgli, eyeing the Powerwild that had landed face-down beside him. Before he had time to even process what happened, more Powerwilds, Bouncywilds, and Creep Coils began tumbling all around him. The Shadows darted closer in curiosity.

"What the-?" King Louie stammered. "It's rainin' Heartless 'round here!"

"Go!" Sora said. He and Kairi jumped off of the balcony and landed swiftly on the ground in front of King Louie. Despite startling him, the ape smiled.

"Ah, now we're talkin'," he mused. "You can definitely lead me to the Keyhole!"

"Don't count on it!" Sora said, swinging his Keyblade at him. King Louie jumped back and dodged, then pointed at Sora and Kairi. "Get 'em!" he commanded.

The Heartless that had fallen earlier began creeping towards Sora and Kairi, now accompanied by Shadows. Sora raised his Keyblade and cast a Thunder spell, which wiped out several of the Heartls that had been weakened by the fall. Kairi took on a Shadow and a Creep Coil, tricking the latter into coiling the Shadow and crushing it, then going in and slicing at it.

King Louie did not notice Baloo and Bagheera sneak in. Mowgli, however, did, and began running towards them.

"Baloo!" he called.

Baloo scooped Mowgli up and began running with him. He looked back to see Louie notice them, which in turn cause him to not notice when a Powerwild took Mowgli from his arms and ran back. Bagheera jumped in and swiped at the Heartless, which dodged and skidded away, handing Mowgli back to King Louie. Baloo turned around and punched the ape in the head, causing him to drop Mowgli. Baloo scooped Mowgli back up and fled.

Sora smote a Bouncywild, then looked out to see more Heartless emerging from the shadows.

"There's too many!" Sora reported.

Kairi glanced around. "Sora!" she called. She pointed at the decrepit pillars and supports of the old ruins. "Let's drop the ceiling on them!"

Sora smirked, then charged through the crowd of monsters and slammed his Keyblade into one of the pillars. It rumbled and shook, but did not topple. Sora executed a combo on the support, finally causing the stone to break ceiling wobbled and bricks began to fall, but the ceiling stayed put. Sora turned to go for another support, but a Creep Coil coiled him.

Kairi finished off the Shadow she was fighting, then rolled to one of the pillars. She stabbed her Keyblade through one of the holes in the structure and twisted, pushing the brick out and causing the support to collapse. Again, however, the ceiling stayed put.

Sora threw the Creep Coil off, then used what remained of his magic energy to execute Sonic Blade, which allowed him to dash forward with a magic-enhanced Keyblade through the crowd of enemies. Sora jogged over to the last pillar nearby and bashed it with his Keyblade, causing it to crumble. The ceiling cracked and creaked, then began to collapse. Sora held his Keyblade over his head and ran. Kairi did the same.

The Heartless gave chase, but were struck by falling stone and brick. King Louie heard the crumbling and looked back. A shocked and worried look spread across his simian face, and he quickly abandoned his chase and an to one of the place where a support had been. He stood in the pillar's place, holding as much of he ceiling as his arms could hold. Sora and Kairi followed Ballo and Bagheera as they escaped into the jungle. The ruins crumbled around Louie, crushing his Heartless army. When the dust settled, the ruins were rubble, with King Louie standing alone and holding up a single brick, confused and frustrated.

* * *

Sora panted and stretched out his back. "Well," he remarked, "I'd say that went pretty well." They had made it away from the ruins, and now Mowgli was resting in a tree, tired from the excitement and lack of sleep the night before.

"Mowgli's safe now," Kairi said.

Bagheera shook his head. "No, he's not. As long as Mowgli's in the jungle, he's not safe."

Ballo scoffed. "He's alright."

Bagheera looked ready to scream. "Baloo, will you listen to me?"

Baloo leaned back and began scratching his back on a tree. "Oh, stop worrying, Baggy. I'll take care of him!"

"Yes, like you did when Louie kidnapped him?" Bagheera scorned.

"Can't a guy make one mistake?" Baloo defended.

"Not in the jungle!" Bagheera argued. "Baloo, sooner or later Mowgli will meet Shere Kahn. He hates man with a vengeance, you know that! He'll want to get Mowgli while he's young and helpless!"

Ballo stammered. "I don't… I mean…" He turned to Kairi and Sora. "Hey, kids, back me up here!"

Sora looked down at the ground. "Sorry, Baloo, but I'm with Bagheera on this one. We could keep him safe, but we won't be here for much longer, and we can't take him with us." Sora looked up at Kairi. "Before Kairi knew how to fight, she had to stay somewhere safe too."

Kairi nodded. "It doesn't mean you can't still be friends. If I've learned anything, it's that if you truly care for someone, like you do for Mowgli, your Hearts will always be connected."

Baloo rubbed the back of his head anxiously. "So what are we going to do?"

"Tell him," Bagheera replied. "If you want what's best for him, you'll take him to the man village where he belongs."

Baloo sighed and rubbed his arm. He stuttered some more, then looked at Sora and Kairi. He sighed. He reached up with his big bear claw and rapped on the tree. "Mowgli?" he called.

The leaves rustled, and Mowgli descended the tree. He smiled and hugged the bear.

"Hey, Baloo!" he gleamed. "What do you want?"

"Mowgli…" Baloo started. "I…I've got to tell you something." He struggled to get the words out.

"What's the matter, Papa Bear?" Mowgli asked, still smiling.

"Look, Mowgli…" Baloo hesitated. "I've got to take you to the man village!"

Mowgli jumped back as his smile instantly vanished. "The man village?!"

Baloo tried to calm the boy down. "Now look, kid, I can explain…"

Mowgli looked to Sora and Kairi. "You don't think I should go to the man village, right?"

Sora shook his head, and Kairi responded. "I'm sorry, Mowgli, but Baloo and Bagheera are right. You'll be safe with your own kind."

"Can't I go with you guys?" Mowgli pleaded.

"No," Sora said. "Where we're going is even more dangerous."

Mowgli turned and ran. Baloo, Bagheera, Sora, and Kairi started to give chase, but Mowgli vanished into the foliage.

"Now where has he gone?!" Bagheera worried.

"We need to find him," Kairi said. "Before Shere Kahn, Kaa, King Louie, or the Heartless do."

"Kairi and I will go in the direction he was headed," Sora explained. "Baloo and Bagheera, you try to cut him off on whatever path he might take."

Bagheera and Baloo nodded, then took off into the jungle calling Mowgli's name. Sora and Kair turned and ran after Mowgli through the vegetation, hacking their way through with their Keyblades.

"Poor kid," Kairi sighed. "He's just afraid."

"I hope we find him in time," Sora remarked. "I'd hate to see him in Kaa's grip or in Shere Kahn's claws."

Kairi quickened her pace following the statement.

* * *

Donald fastened the Gummi block to the ship and wiped his feathered brow. He took a few wobbly steps backwards and admired his work.

"Switch it on!" Donald called.

Goofy gave a thumbs-up from inside the cockpit, then activated the spaceship. It whirred to life, sputtered a bit, then raised above the ground. Goofy chuckled and set it back down.

"All fixed up, Donald!" Goofy called.

Donald nodded. "It may be a little jumpy, but it should be able to take us where we need to go. Once we're done, we'll take it back to the castle for a complete fix."

As Donald pondered the best way to keep the ship safe, he heard a rustling behind him. He turned around to see Sora and Kairi emerge from the brush.

"Heya fellas!" Goofy called, getting out of the ship. "Ships's all fixed up. Did ya'll find the Keyhole yet?"

Kairi shook her head. "No. Mowgli is missing, and he's in danger. We need to find him!"

Donald scrunched up his brow disapprovingly. "Little brat," he quacked. He sighed. "Well, we can help you look now that we're done. Do you have any idea where he could be?"

Sora sighed. "Not really. He ran in this direction, and we've just been running in a straight line this way."

"Wait a second," Goofy said. "I have an idea. Let's hover around in the Gummi Ship and search from above. As long as no one important sees us, we won't be meddlin'!"

Donald nodded. "It'd be a nice, slow, easy test run for the ship too."  
"Great idea," Sora said, hopping towards the ship. "Just keep low and try to make sure no one figures out that we're from another world."

Donald and Goofy boarded the ship, and Sora and Kairi followed. They all took their positions and rose up above the trees, then flew at a slow pace over the jungle. Sora had to admire the view, as he could appreciate the jungle's colors from that height. However, he admittedly could not see far under the canopies, so he did not know where Mowgli could be.

As they continued to fly, Sora noted that the sky was becoming cloudy. Puffs of ominous grey began to eclipse the sun, slowly drifting over the once blue sky. The jungle seemed to change as well, with the trees rapidly becoming more sparse and more of the ground showing. Rocks littered the area, and swampy water sources flowed through dead trees.

Goofy pressed his nose against the glass, then pointed. "Gawrsh, I think I see him!"

"Where?" Sora exclaimed, rushing up. He looked to where Goofy was pointing. Though it was small and distant, Sora could make out a skinny, tanned boy with black hair and a red loincloth.

"That's him!" Sora said excitedly. "Quick, Donald, set down where he can't see us!"

* * *

Mowgli kicked the dirt despairingly. He reached down and picked up a small stone, then threw it into a nearby puddle, causing it to splash slightly. He reached up with his arm and wiped the tears from his eyes. He felt lost and betrayed. His Heart aching, he sat on top of a large stone and pondered what to do.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy emerged from a small patch of covered jungle where they had parked the ship. Careful not to startle the boy, they hurried over to him, but slow enough that he would not run.

Just as they reached his rock, Mowgli looked up that them. "What do you want?" he said with a somber expression.

Kairi sighed and leaned down next to Mowgli. "Mowgli, I know it doesn't seem fair, but your friends are just looking out for you."

Mowgli shifted on his seat. "I don't have any friends," he said.

Sora stepped forward. "Look, Mowgli. I know you feel stuck. But they really are your friends, and we are too."

Kairi nodded. "You're a good person, Mowgli. And we care about you. And Baloo cares about you. And Bagheera too. You've forged a bond with all of us. And no matter where you go, that bond stays strong. Even if you leave the jungle, it'll never leave your Heart."

Mowgli glanced into Kairi's eyes. "Do you really think so?"

Kairi nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know so. It's okay to be afraid of what you don't understand, but don't run from it. Embrace it. Sora and I wouldn't be here now if it weren't for friendship and courage."

Mowgli smiled, but it did not last long, as a new and frightening sound followed. Kairi stood up and activated Destiny's Embrace, and Sora, Donald, and Goofy activated their weapons as they turned to face the sound.

Before them, not more than a few feet away, was a massive orange and black tiger. He wore a sinister grin on his face and was chuckling evilly. He clapped his mighty paws together.

"Bravo, bravo!" he said in a faux cheer. Hie voice was deep and intimidating, but sophisticated and prideful. "What a lovely speech! And thank you for detaining my prey."

Sora stepped in front of Mowgli. "You should run, Mowgli!"

Mowgli stood up on his rock defiantly. "Run?" he said. "Why should I run?"

The tiger looked insulted. "Why should you run? Could it be possible you don't know who I am?"

Mowgli crossed his arms. "I know you, all right. You're Shere Kahn."

The tiger puffed his chest out in pride. He held up his paw and barred his massive claws. "Precisely," he said with a smile. "Then you should also know that everyone runs from Shere Kahn."

Mowgli stood firm. "I'm not afraid. Not anymore."

Shere Kahn admired his claws and chuckled. "You have spirit. But spirit is nothing against the Darkness. Once you and any others that dare defy me are out of the way, I shall use those Heartless monsters to ensure my rule is left unchallenged… forever." Shere Kahn got on all fours and grinned.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy stood between Shere Kahn and Mowgli. "You'll have to go through us!" Sora shouted.

Shere Kahn lowered his evil head. "If you insist," he smirked.

Just as Sora raised his Keyblade, Shere Kahn roared and leapt at him, teeth and claws barred. He tackled Sora to the ground, pressing a paw up against Radiant Horizon. Sora wrestled with the tiger, and pushed back on his Keyblade as Shere Kahn's snapping jaws came closer to his face. He managed to kick Shere Kahn hard enough to squirm out.

Shere Kahn turned around and roared. He swiped at the party with his claws, partially slashing Goofy's arm and causing him to yelp. Kairi rushed in and batted the tiger on the head, but it only dazed the villain as he bit down on the Keyblade on its next swing and threw it with Kairi still holding on, causing her to land painfully on a pile of rocks.

"Take that!" Donald shouted, casting a Blizzard spell. Shere Kahn was pushed back by the ice crystals, then charged Donald. Donald quacked loudly in fear and began to run with the tiger giving chase. He scuttled, but Shere Kahn nipped his tail feathers in his teeth, causing Donald to cry out.

Sora jumped to his feet and ran at Shere Kahn. He grabbed the tiger's tail, causing him to ty and turn around and bite hm, but Sora turned with the tiger and held on to the tail as he began striking Shere Kahn's back and hind legs.

"Let go, you fool!" Shere Kahn bellowed. He roared, and a haze of dark purple enveloped him, forcing Sora to let go. Kahn's eyes glowed white as he channeled Darkness, and he began clawing rapidly at Sora. Sora managed to block, but was knocked down by the force of the swings. Kairi jumped in at struck Kahn to get his attention, but Kahn simply charged around the area, rapidly striking all four of the group members as he rampaged by. As the Darkness dissipated, Kahn roared and charged Kairi again.

Kairi waited for the villain to get close, then parried his gnashing teeth and cast a Fire spell. The flames burned at Kahn's face, and Kairi, Goofy, and Mowgli noticed Shere Kahn jump back in fear from the flames.

"That must be the only thing he's afraid of!" Goofy said. "Fire!"

Shere Kahn turned and attacked Goofy, clawing at him. Goofy held up his shield, then bashed him back with it. Donald rushed in (favoring his bitten bottom) and tried to cast a Fire spell, but Shere Kahn batted him away before he could. Donald slammed into a tree as the spell activated, igniting the tree and almost immediately covering it in roaring fire. Donald moaned as he fell limp to the ground, unconscious.

Sora tried to cast another spell, but his magic reserves were still empty. Reluctantly, he pulled out the Ether that Kairi had given him earlier and used it. He felt his magical prowess return, then used Sonic Blade to quickly zoom across the battlefield, stabbing at his enemy with each pass. Shere Kahn cried out in pain and frustration as each blow landed, with Sora's spell stopping a few feet away.

The tiger's face was engulfed by rage as he barred his teeth and tackled Sora again, pinning him down.

"I'll kill you for that!" he roared, and he began clawing at Sora, slashing at his chest, arms, and face.

"Sora!" Kairi screamed. She looked at Goofy, who nodded at her. Kairi jumped horizontally toward Goofy, who stuck out his shield. Quickly writhing in the air, Kairi's feet landed flat on the shield, and Goofy propelled her at Shere Kahn. Kairi held her Keyblade out in front of her as she braced for impact.

Sora screamed and yelled as the claws slashed at him, and he tried his best to retaliate with the Keyblade. However, every time he tried to strike, Shere Kahn would hit him in the face and disorient him again. Suddenly the tiger roared and was struck, knocking him off of Sora. Sora gasped for air and opened his eyes to see Kairi ramming Shere Kahn at full speed down to the ground. She landed on her feet between Shere Kahn and Sora, holding out her Keyblade.

"Stupid man-cub!" Shere Kahn yelled furiously, snapping at her with his teeth.

Mowgli hurried over to Donald and dragged his limp body away from the tree as it was consumed by more fire. Branched cracked and fell off, including a particularly large one with flames still roaring at the end. Mowgli looked over to Sora, Kairi, and Goofy. Sora got up slowly and stood next to Goofy. Kairi jumped back to avoid Shere Kahn's teeth and stood beside them.

Mowgli got an idea. With an expression of determination and a lack of fear, Mowgli grabbed the flaming branch and ran up behind Shere Kahn, who was distracted with his battle. In a series of quick motions, Mowgli tied Shere Kahn's tail in a knot around the branch.

Sora saw what Mowgli did and smirked. "Look behind you," he said weakly, but loud enough that Shere Khan could hear.

The tiger flashed him an annoyed look, but looked behind him anyway. When his head turned back, it had a new expression: terror. Shere Kahn roared in fear, and began sprinting away from the fire. However, the fire followed him, and burned his backside. He turned and tried to bat out the flames with his paws, but they burned with each swipe. He bellowed and roared, then took off into the jungle, still dragging the flames behind him.

Sora panted, then fell to one knee in exhaustion, feeling the sting of his injuries.

"Are you okay?" Kairi asked, leaning down. Sora nodded and lifted his Keyblade, casting Cure on himself. The gashes faded as he stood up. Kairi pointed her Keyblade at Donald and cast a Cure spell, waking him up with a start. He got back up and waddled over.

"Where is that mangy, stripy, orange piece of flea bait?!" Donald quacked.

"Gone now," Goofy chuckled.

Kairi hurried over to Mowgli and put a hand on his shoulder. "Good job, Mowgli," she said sweetly. "That was very brave."

Sora and Donald walked over to the flaming tree, and the latter used a few Blizzard spells to put out the flames before they spread. As Sora watched, he noticed a glow coming from underneath his feet. He looked down to see the outline of the Keyhole on the dirty ground where he stood. He chuckled at the coincidence, but held out his Keyblade, allowed the magic beam to emerge, and locked it. The Keyhole vanished as quickly as Sora had noticed it.

As everyone got their bearings, Baloo and Bagheera's faces poked out.

"Mowgli!" Baloo called. He ran up and scooped the boy up in his arms, giving him a big bear hug. "Don't you scare me like that again!"

Bagheera walked over to Sora and Kairi. "You fought off Shere Kahn?"

Sora nodded. "For now," he replied. "He'll be back, though."

Bagheera nodded. "Well, it gives us a little more time to talk Mowgli into going to the man-village."

Kairi shrugged. "He might be more open to the idea now that he's been attacked by a snake, an ape, and a tiger."

"I doubt it," Bagheera mumbled.

Baloo threw Mowgli over his shoulders, giving him a piggyback ride. "Come on, little britches!" He cheered. "Let's go do some bear stuff!"

Mowgli laughed as Baloo carried him off. Before he entered the foliage again, he turned and waved to Sora and Kairi. They waved back.

"I assume you are headed out?" Bagheera said.

Kairi nodded. "Mowgli doesn't need our help anymore. He'll be safer now that we've taken care of the major threats, so feel free to take some time talking to him now." She winked. "But we had a little Heart-to-Heart talk and I think he'll be a little more receptive now."

Bagheera nodded. "One can only hope. Goodbye, strange man-cubs. I cannot thank you enough for all your help."

Sora nodded. "We might just see you guys again. You never know."

"Still," Bagheera continued, "I would like to give you a thank-you gift. Here." He extended his paw and pushed a vibrantly-colored stone fastened to a rope towards Sora. Sora picked the gift up and looked at it: the stone had swirling patterns of color, almost identical to the colors and patterns Kaa had used to entrance him earlier. The rope was made from twisted bark and leaves, but was sturdy. Sora removed his Keychain from his Keyblade and replaced it with the panther's gift, transforming his Keyblade yet agin. Now it appeared resembling a miniature tree, with intricate bark and a bit consisting of large leaves, jagged stone, and blooming flowers. The handle now resembled a python's coils wrapping around the wood. Radiant Horizon had transformed into the Bare Necessities.

* * *

As Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy headed for the Gummi Ship, Kaa slithered out of the branches and eyed them spitefully as they passed under him.

"If I never sssee thossse rough-and-tough man-cubsss ever again, it will be too sssoon!" he grumbled to himself before slithering back up into the canopies.


	10. Toontown

Sora leaned down and examined the map on the control board, carefully tilting the Gummi Ship's controls. The ship creaked loudly and Sora straightened them, sighing.

"We might need to turn around," he said. "Even with the repairs you guys did, this thing is barely staying together. We might have to turn back while we still can."

Donald sighed. He pressed a few buttons to recalibrate his computer, and one popped off as he pressed it. He stumbled and caught it, pressing it back. "You might be right," he replied.

Goofy examined the map. "Lookie here, fellas. This here reading shows there are barely any Heartless in the next world."

"Really?" Sora said, peering at the map. "Huh. Why do you think that is? Not only are its pathways open, but it's got a lot of connecting ones. There should be Heartless all over that place."

Donald shrugged. "Well, if there are less Heartless there, we could chance it," he suggested. "Maybe we can get some help."

Sora was open to the idea, but wanted further opinions. He turned around in his seat to ask Kairi. "Kairi, what do you think?" he asked.

However, Kairi was slumped down in her seat, fast asleep. Her arms were limply crossed over her waist, and her breathing was steady and calm.

"Gawrsh, she must be tired," Goofy remarked.

Sora nodded. "Well, she's been through a lot. This has been a more exiting period than she's used to. She's probably exhausted. We both got a little drowsy on the beach back on Moana's world, and her nap in the jungle was…" He paused and looked for the right wording. "… rudely interrupted."

"It's probably good for her to take a long break," Donald quacked. "so are we chancing it with the next world or not?"

Sora sighed and turned back in his chair. "Sure," he replied. "Why not?" He hit the thruster and propelled forward.

Kairi stirred in her seat.

* * *

Kairi looked around. The place was very familiar, but she had a hard time remembering what it was. She knew she had been here before, a long time ago… and for quite a long time, but she was having trouble piecing together when that had been. The place was not just familiar, but it felt… personal. It was a warm beach with crashing waves, dotted with palm trees and small rocks. Nearby was a massive cave opening with a small waterfall flowing in front of it. The cave was filled with strange, but familiar items: a bottle with a piece of paper in it, a frayed rope, a cloth suspended by a vertical pole, and a blue, star-shaped glass trinket. The walls of the cave were lined with claw marks and chalk scribblings.

Kairi herself stood on the center of the beach, looking into the cave. When she turned around to look at the ocean and sky, all she saw was white void. Even the waves seemed to fade into blankness. As she pondered the sight, she remembered: this was her mind. Every item here represented her dreams, her common thoughts, and her deepest, darkest fears. She had been in this place when her Heart was stolen so many years ago, trapped in her own mind, quite literally lost in thought. She looked around confused. Why was she back?

"Why am I back here?" she asked (or rather thought) aloud. She gazed up at the void, concerned and confused. Then, from everywhere and nowhere at the same time, she heard a laugh. Not a comforting, joyful laugh, but a mischievous, cackling one. She instantly recognized it.

"Who is that?" she muttered to herself. She looked back out at the waves. "Show yourself!"

As soon as she spoke, a cold wind blew, not from the ocean, but from the cave. She wrapped her hands around her arms and rubbed them, attempting to keep warm and block her skin from the freezing wind. Shivering, she turned and looked into the maw of the cave. The wind swirled in the opening, and the claw marks and chalk scribbles began to glow a bright blue. Suddenly the glow seemed to leap from the markings, gathering in a glowing mass in the center of the maw. The glows continued to gather until they formed a triangular shape. There was a bright flash of white that enveloped Kairi's entire vision, and when it cleared, she scowled at the yellow, one-eyed triangle being that hovered before her.

"You!" Kairi huffed, pointing at the figure angrily.

Bill Cipher materialized a black cane and twirled it in his thin appendages. "Did you miss me?" he asked in his condescending voice. "Admit it, you missed me!"

Kairi huffed. "Not in the slightest. You worked with the Heartless and tried to destroy Stan's mind!"

Bill laughed and hovered closer. "It was a job, kid!" he remarked. "Nothing personal. No hard feelings."

"What are you doing here?" Kairi demanded.

"Straight to the point. I like that," Bill said. "I've been keeping an eye on you since Gravity Falls, and I must say, I'm impressed."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, 'impressed'?"

Bill landed on a rock near her, placing his bottom edge on the top as if he were sitting. "Look Paopu, I know a little something about Keyblade wielders, okay? All that stuff in Pine Tree's journal? I was there when the author wrote about all that. I'm familiar with 'em. And you are quite the Keyblade wielder."

Kairi was still hesitant to trust the monster, but the words of flattery were nice to hear. "Really?" she asked.

"Of course!" Bill assured. "Better than your friend, I would say. The point is, I like you. And now that we're out of Gravity Falls and my gig with Gideon is expired, I'd like to help you out. Like I said, I know a lot about Keyblade wielders, and the one that the journal describes was one of the big shots. If you want, I could give you a few pointers. A way to improve yourself. Show ol' Keyblade Boy what you're really made of."

Kairi cocked her head. Pointers? Extra training? She shook her head slightly. "I don't want to show up Sora," she said. "I just want the skills to protect those I care about."

"And you'll get those!" Bill said. "But what's the harm in getting on Keyblade's level, or even getting better than him? This whole trip he's treated you like backup, not like a partner. He thinks you're a burden."

Kairi glanced down at her shoes. She did not think Sora would think of her that way, but she thought about how they had fought after she crashed the ship, and how he had to save her from all sorts of enemies. She even thought back to before she had gotten the Keyblade, and how many times Sora had to save her from Ansem, Organization XIII, and Xehanort. Did Sora really just see her as a damsel in distress?

"But you can prove him wrong!" Bill assured. "Prove that you're not only able to handle yourself, but that you don't need him anymore! Let me teach you what I know, and become ol' Yen Sid's star pupil!" Then Bill's tone shifted. "I only ask for a small… favor… in return."

It was then that Kairi remembered the trickster she was talking to. She looked back up at Bill angrily and stamped her foot. "I'll never do a favor for you!" she said defiantly. "I'm good enough! Remember who defeated you last time!"

Suddenly, Bill was not on the rock anymore. Kairi whirled around to see the triangle behind her, twirling his cane. "Right!" he chuckled sarcastically. "You 'defeated' me. Well, if you ever change your mind, I'll be here for you, ready to make a deal!"

Bill stopped twirling his cane and leaned in to her. "Hey, you wanna see my impression of you in about three seconds?" He backed up and screamed loudly, gripping his hands into fists.

Kairi awoke with a start, her hands tightening into fists and screaming. Destiny's Embrace materialized in one of her fists. She bolted upright in her seat.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy all turned in their seats.

"Kairi!" Sora exclaimed. "What's wrong?"

"Are you alright?" Goofy asked.

Kairi panted and scanned around. She was awake now, in the Gummi Ship. She glanced at her teammates' concerned expressions, then leaned back in her chair.

"It…" she stuttered, "it's nothing." She looked out the window at the stars as she deactivated her Keyblade. "Just a bad dream."

"Well, it's probably for the best you woke up when you did," Sora said, turning back around. "We're almost at the next world, and there are significantly less Heartless there. We should just be able to fly in, lock the Keyhole, and head back out. And if you're still tired, you can rest while we take care of it."

Kairi shifted in her seat. "Well, I'm coming with you."

Sora chuckled. "If you want. But you can stand down if you really want to. Also, don't forget, I promised you you could lock a Keyhole on this mission. Just let me know when you feel like it."

Kairi huffed. Sora's words were nice, but she was now thinking back to what Bill had said. Was he subtly trying to ask her to stay back this time? Was he getting tired of her? Why did he have to treat her like such a child? She decided that not only would she be joining him every step of the way, but she would also be pushing herself even harder. Not to show up Sora, but to impress him. Maybe he'd treat her as more of an equal then.

"Next world right ahead!" Goofy said. Sora watched as the next world approached, and was astonished. The entire mass was an explosion of color and light. Buildings covered the entirety of the world, ranging from houses to skyscraper, and all were tilted or oddly-shaped. The colors and architecture really reminded Sora of Disney Castle.

Suddenly, to both his and Kairi's surprise, Donald quacked happily. "Goofy, look!"

Goofy pressed his nose against the glass. "Is that what I think it is?"

"It is!" Donald cheered. "It's Toontown!"

Sora stared at them, confused. "You guys know this place?"

Goofy chuckled. "Do we! We haven't been to this place in ages!"

Donald nodded. "This is where we all lived before Mickey was a king."

"Before Mickey was a king?" Sora pondered.

Donald nodded again. "That explains why there are so many connecting paths," he said. "This place is one of the few whose paths remained open, even after most of the worlds were separated. People from all sorts of different worlds can come here. Legend says even people from other dimensions can access it."

"Other dimensions?" Sora questioned. His head hurt.

"And not only that, but I know for a fact that it has one of the biggest, best Gummi Garages around!" Goof exclaimed. "Land quick! I can't wait to be back here!"

Sora shrugged. "If you say so," he said. He slowly dipped the controls down.

* * *

As Sora dipped down to the surface, he looked ahead and saw a massive brick tunnel before them.

"Do I go through the tunnel?" he asked. Donald nodded, and Sora gently entered the tunnel, hovering over the ground. After about thirty seconds of nothing but the Gummi Ship's headlights, Sora saw what appeared to be a red curtain up ahead. As he approached it, the curtain raised and the ship was allowed into a vibrant wonderland. A sun rose high into the sky, and it had a face. All the trees lining the area did as well. They smiled and began to sing merrily.

_"Smile, darn ya, smile!_  
_You know this old world is a great world after all_  
_Smile, darn ya, smile!_  
_And right away watch Lady Luck pay you a call_

_Things are never black as they are painted_  
_Time for you and joy to get acquainted_  
_Make life worthwhile_  
_Come on and smile, darn ya, smile!"_

The path was suddenly lined with dozens upon dozens of creatures: dancing animals, a dragon blowing kisses, singing mushrooms, and even a trio of tap-dancing skeletons. They all waved as the Gummi Ship passed by.

Sora and Kairi could not help but stare at the commotion. They had certainly seen many strange things, but this place was far brighter and more chipper than any place they had encountered before. Donald and Goofy bounced to the song, which the various inhabitants continued to sing:

_"Smile, darn ya, smile!_  
_For there is nothing that you cannot overcome_  
_Smile, darn ya, smile!_  
_And where the clouds appear you soon will find the sun_

_Life is really only what you make it_  
_Stand right up and show them you can take it_  
_Make life worthwhile_  
_Come on and smile, darn ya, smile!"_

As surreal as the experience was, Sora had to admit that the bright and welcoming nature of this world was relieving; most places he went he was expecting a Heartless horde, but this place seemed just happy to see him.

Sora parked the Gummi Ship on the side of a road upon reaching the city he had seen from above. The buildings all seemed to look down at him, continuing the feeling that the whole world was happy that he was there. As Sora and Kairi began to disembark from the ship, Donald and Goofy barged out and looked around, clearly giddy. Sora looked at Kairi and shrugged meekly before turning back to the others. Kairi admired the view, but did not respond in any way.

Donald breathed in the warm air. "Ahh…" he exhaled. "It feels like home!"

Goofy agreed. "Gawrsh, how long has it been since we were last here?"

"Too long," Donald replied.

Sora had never seen Donald or Goofy so nostalgic before. He figured that the crazy place must hold a very dear place in their hearts.

"Donald? Goofy? Is that you?" a bouncy, excitable voice called. The group turned to see a white rabbit about Donald's height, with long ears, a goofy grinning face, and red overalls hopping towards them at a rapid pace.

"Roger!" Goofy cheered. The rabbit bounded towards them with a mighty leap and tackled them both, almost taking Sora down in the process. He wrapped his arms around them and squeezed tight.

"Jeepers, fellows!" the rabbit cried out. "It's been ages since I've seen you!" He released his hold, allowing Donald and Goofy to catch their breaths. "What have you been up to?" he asked. "How's ol' pip-squeak doin'?"

Donald cleared his throat. "It's 'King Mickey' now," he replied.

The rabbit laughed and blew a raspberry. "What, he's too good for the ol' song-and-dance now?"

Goofy chuckled. "It's good to see you too, Roger."

The rabbit turned on his heel to look at Sora and Kairi. He craned his neck in a comically long fashion, then grinned happily again. "Who are your friends, fellows?"

Donald introduced them. "That's Sora and Kairi," he said. He turned to Sora and Kairi. "Roger Rabbit," he introduced.

"Hi," Sora said.

Kairi waved. "Nice to meet you,"

Suddenly, Roger gripped Sora's hand tightly and began shaking it furiously. "How you doin'? Nice to meet ya! Any friend of Don and Goof is a friend of mine!"

Sora struggled to keep up with the rabbit's fast talking and eccentric nature. When he finally let go of Sora's hand, Sora's arm hurt more than after a long Keyblade battle.

Without so much as a change in his tone, Roger whirled back to Donald and Goofy. "So, what are you guys doing here? Just stoppin' by? Tell me, p-p-p-please!"

Donald motioned towards the Gummi Ship. "Our ship needs some repairs. Plus, we're here to get rid of any Heartless you might have kicking around."

Roger's expression flashed from joy to fury as he stomped his foot rapidly. "Ooh, those Heartless! They make me so hoppin' mad! You sure you can get rid of them?"

Sora decided to interject. He activated his Keyblade. "That's why we're here," he said.

As quick as it had changed the first time, Roger's expression went back to enthusiasm. "Well, if we find any, I'll let you take care of 'em then! B-b-b-but let's focus on your ship! We can tow it to a Gummi Garage!"

"Actually," Goofy said, "let's take it to the Clubhouse. Not only can we fix it up there, but there are some things there we can use."

Roger winked. "You got it, pal!" he cried. Roger then stuck out his thumb, and suddenly a roofless taxi cab with a face barreled down the road and stopped mere inches from where they stood.

"Hey, Benny!" Roger called.

"Hey, Roger!" the cab replied in a gruff voice. "Donald! Goofy! Haven't given you a ride in some time!" He looked at Sora and Kairi. "And two other bums."

Sora scowled slightly, but Benny kept talking. "So, where to, Roger?" he asked.

Roger motioned to the Gummi Ship. "Think you can tow that to the Clubhouse?" he asked.

Benny gazed at the large ship and huffed, but consented. "Fine. But just this once. And I'm drivin'."

Roger cheered and jumped into Benny's driver seat. Donald and Goofy squeezed in beside him. Donald glanced at Sora and Kairi.

"Well?" he asked. "Hop in!"

Sora shrugged, deactivated his Keyblade, and stepped into the back seat, slightly uncomfortable that his ride was another being. Kairi cautiously stepped in as well, and the door slammed behind her, making her jump. Without warning, Benny rushed in front of the Gummi Ship, carrying the five passengers with him. A wench extended from his back seat and hooked onto the ship. As soon as it was secure, Benny rocketed down the street at breakneck speeds, dragging the spaceship behind him. Sora and Kairi had to hold onto their seats to keep from flying away. Sora leaned up to the front seat as much as he could with the wind resistance, leaning up to Donald.

"So what's this Clubhouse that Goofy was talking about?" he asked. He was forced to raise his voice over the screeching tires, dragging ship, and bellowing wind.

Donald reclined back to talk with him. "It's an old place of the King's. Well, before he was a king. It was kind of like our base; it has a Gummi Garage, facilities, bedrooms, a giant telescope, and more. We might even have old Potions and Ethers there for you and Kairi."

Sora nodded. He raised his hand to shield his face from the wind. "How much farther is it?"

"It's kind of out of the way," Donald replied. "On the edge of Toontown, out beyond the forest. But at the rate of speed Benny's going at, we'll get there soon."

Sora had not even noticed that, while they were talking, they had passed up all of the large buildings and crazy urban environments and had entered a bright, colorful forest of round trees. Even the road beneath them had changed from asphalt to a strange polka-dotted concrete.

Again without warning, Benny suddenly screeched to a halt, sending everyone, including Roger, lurching forward.

"Uh oh!" the cab exclaimed.

"What is it, Benny?" Roger asked.

Benny shifted his wheel wells as if to point ahead of him. "That," he replied.

In the road in front of them was a group of Heartless: four Shadows, three Spring Metals, one Bolt Tower, and four Cogs, appearing as large black sprockets with beaming yellow eyes.

Sora and Kairi jumped out and activated their Keyblades. "We'll handle this," Kairi said.

As they approached, the Bolt Tower suddenly shot an electric bolt at them. Sora and Kairi dodged out of the way, then ran into the fight. The spiky Cogs spun towards Kairi, propelling themselves off the ground to launch themselves at her. Kairi blocked the charging Heartless with her Keyblade, swinging at the last one and swatting it a considerable distance away.

Sora dropped his Keyblade to the ground and slid at the Shadows, instantly destroying one and knocking the others back. He then turned his attention to the Bolt Tower, leaping up to perform an arial attack. However, he was caught off-guard by a Spring Metal's wind attack, which struck him violently and pushed him back. As he skidded to a halt, the Spring Metal advanced forward, still encircled by sharp winds, hitting Sora back again. Sora rolled out of the way, then took the free moment to cut down two more Shadows.

Kairi swatted and struck the Cogs, which, despite being around the same size, were much tougher than the Shadows. Kairi jumped into the air above the group of Cogs, casting a Thunder spell as she sailed overhead. The lightning bolt came down and finished off the Cogs, and Kairi redirected herself midair to strike one of the Spring Metals to the ground.

Sora attacked the Bolt Tower, causing its round head to fly off of its base. The Heartless juggled its appendage with its cylindrical form for a moment before Sora struck it hard, defeating it. As The Spring Metal approached, Sora quickly maneuvered behind it and began rapidly striking it from behind. It collapsed to the ground, and Sora took the opportunity to finish it off.

As Kairi finished off the Spring Metal she had attacked, she and Sora looked up to see only a Shadow and a Spring Metal remaining. Quickly they rushed together, crossing their Keyblades while simultaneously swinging them at a downward angle. The weapons struck the Shadow hard, launching it into the Spring Metal. The Shadow died on impact, and the Spring Metal was thrown back, spinning. Sora and Kairi then threw their Keyblades at it, trapping it in a vortex of spinning blades until it was destroyed and the weapons returned to their respective masters' hands.

Sora and Kairi smiled at each other, and Kairi gave Sora a thumbs-up. They then returned to the cab and took their seats.

"All clear," Sora said triumphantly.

Benny did not hesitate to take off down the road again, again causing a jolt from his passengers.

Less than a few minutes later, Benny screeched to a halt yet again. Sora looked ahead to scan for Heartless, but when he saw Roger, Donald, and Goofy get out, he figured they must be at their destination. He hopped out of the car, Kairi doing the same.

Sora looked around for the Clubhouse, but there were no structures to be seen. There was a massive grassy clearing on the side of the road, but the rest was trees for as far as they eye could see.

Benny dragged the ship to the edge of the clearing and unlatched it. He hurried over to Donald and Goofy.

"Well, there you go. If you need me again, just stick out your thumb!" he called. He then revved his engine and bolted down the road.

Kairi stepped next to the ship and put a hand on it as she scanned the clearing.  
"Um, where's the Clubhouse?" she asked.

Donald chuckled as he, Goofy, and Roger stepped into the clearing. "To make the Clubhouse appear, we need to say the magic words," he explained.

"Magic words?" Sora asked, coming to stand next to Kairi.

Goofy nodded. "Just watch and listen," he said giddily. He, Donald, and Roger all faced into the center of the clearing and said in unison: "Meeska, Mooska, Mickey Mouse!"

Sora waited for something to happen, but the clearing remained empty and the air remained still.

Donald, Goofy, and Roger repeated themselves: "Meeska, Mooska, Mickey Mouse!"

There was a tinkling sound, and then, from the center of the clearing, a dazzling display of glowing gold sparkles. The magic, glittering dust formed a sphere, which suddenly turned red, and black additions began materializing right before Sora and Kairi's eyes. In no time at all, the glowing sparkles had enveloped the clearing, transforming into pieces of a giant structure. It was a round red building with another black spherical structure on top of it, and two smaller black spheres on top of that. A blue, curving slide appeared from one end, and a yellow, shoe-shaped door emerged from the red part. A small black tower with a white glove materialized next to it, as well as a series of hedges, a garden, a doghouse, and a stone pathway to the entrance. The whole place resembled King Mickey.

Sora and Kairi stared in awe at the magical sight before them.

"Like it?" Goofy asked.

"That is so cool!" Kairi exclaimed.

"You guys weren't kidding!" Sora added.

Donald hurried over to the Gummi Ship and began pushing it towards the Clubhouse. Sora, Kairi, and Goofy joined him, and in a group effort, began moving the Gummi Ship to a yellow, shoe-shaped garage. When they were close enough, Donald ran to the garage and opened it, and the other three pushed it inside.

Sora wiped his brow and looked around. There were Gummi blocks on shelves all over the walls, and what walls that did not have Gummi pieces had various tools and gears on them.

Kairi was impressed. "You guys should be able to really fix the ship now!"

"Better than that!" Donald said proudly. "We can upgrade the ship here too! New weapons, new shields, new controls… we'll be flying out of here in basically a brand-new ship!"

"That's great!" Sora said. "What should we do while you guys are working?"

Goofy grabbed a wrench and a Gummi Block resembling a wire off of the shelves. "I 'spose you'll have to look for the Keyhole, but that can wait until we head back into the town. For now, just relax and enjoy yourselves! Help yourselves to anything we got in there that you can use!"

Sora glanced at Kairi and shrugged, then smiled and waved her along. Donald and Goofy watched as they hurried out of the garage and over to the main building.

Goofy sighed. "It's good for them to have a break after everything so far," he said.

Donald nodded, but slowly. "But we still have so much to do," he reminded. "We still don't know what the deal is with that coffin that Lightning found, and we haven't figured out where the Darkness is coming from. We still have many worlds to save and Keyholes to lock."

Goofy agreed. "Well, at least our ship will do better now."

Donald nodded again as he took off of one of the broken Gummi pieces. "Still, as good as it feels to be back here… I can't help thinking about that coffin. Something tells me Sora has been thinking about it too. There was just such an… awful feeling when we found it. And if the Light spell carved onto it is anything to go by, whatever was in there…" Donald trailed off, not even able to put the level of Darkness into words.

* * *

Sora and Kairi wandered with amazement around the Clubhouse. It truly had everything: a kitchen stocked with food (which Sora was happy to help himself to), a swirling slide, a Gummi takeoff station, and a large computer screen.

Kairi approached the computer. There was a small note attached to the wall beside it.

"Good news!" Kairi read. "I have made improvements to the Mousekedoer! Now all you need to do is say, 'Hiya Toodles!' - Prof. Ludwig von Drake."

Shortly after Kairi had spoken, she heard a trilling sound. She looked up to see a small device flying towards her, shaped like King Mickey's head. It spun around her, trilling as if it was happy to see her.

"Well hi there!' she said, giggling as the device flew around. "You must be Toodles!" The device trilled and spun with excitement.

"Can you show me how this thing works?" Kairi asked, motioning towards the computer. Toodles shook in delight, then quickly inserted itself into a slot on the Mousekedoer. The screen then came to life, showing four colorful boxes, each displaying an item: one had a Mega-Potion, one a Mega-Ether, one a bag of Munny, and one a glowing question mark. Toodles then promptly ejected itself from the machine, but floated next to it as a small hatch opened up underneath the slot. Kairi stepped forward and looked inside to see a Summon Charm: a purple gem with the image of a question mark on it.

"Oh!" Kairi said happily. "You want to help us out!" Toodles trilled its happy response. Kairi carefully took the Summon Charm and pocketed it. She smiled at Toodles. "I'll be sure to tell King Mickey that you're helping us!" Toodles spun and soared with glee.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sora had found an arcade game in one of the other rooms. While he was not sure of the title, he was playing as a duck superhero clad in purple and black. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop, swinging with a grappling hook, and using tear gas against bank robber enemies. He was doing well until he got to the boss, a palette swap of his character in yellow and crimson, and ran out of lives. He huffed in annoyance, but shrugged off his loss. He made his way back outside, where Kairi had just exited.

"What now?" Kairi said.

"We need to head back into town and find the Keyhole," Sora said. He smiled. "But we can actually take our time, and maybe visit a little bit!"

Donald and Goofy emerged from the Gummi garage. "Howdy, y'all," Goofy said cheerfully. "What d'ya think of the Clubhouse?"

"It's amazing!" Kairi said. "You guys sure are lucky."

"Well, no visit to Toontown is complete without a quick tour," Donald said. "I'm sure Roger would be happy to oblige. And while we're sightseeing, we can look for the Keyhole, all while the Gummi Ship is being upgraded!"

"Great idea!" Sora said. "let's g-" Suddenly, Sora was cut off by a Shadow and a pair of Cogs appearing in front of him. The shadow took a swing at him, hitting Sora back as he activated Bare Necessities.

"Here too?" Donald quacked, drawing his staff. Without hesitation, he cast Blizzard on them, destroying the shadow and pushing the Cogs towards Sora. Sora swung his Keyblade, slicing and defeating both of the Heartless in one swing.

"Good thing there aren't any really strong Heartless here, or that would have hurt a lot more," Sora said, rubbing his bruised chest.

"If Heartless are appearin' way out here, then it'd probably be a good idea if we get back into town now," Goofy said. "They may need us."

Donald nodded before turning and walking back to the road, with everyone else following.

"All set?" Roger asked. Donald nodded, and Roger stuck out his thumb.

There was a familiar screeching sound and yellow blur as Benny pulled up right next to Donald.

"Hey there!" Benny called. "I'm not towin' that ship again."

"We just need to get back into town," Kairi explained. "Is everything alright there?"

"No issues yet," Benny assured. "Hop on in!"

Quickly, all four of them piled into the cab. With not a single word, Benny took off down the road again.

* * *

Benny screeched to a halt in the square, where Roger started bounding with joy.

"Oh boy, oh, boy, oh boy!" he cheered as he and the other passengers exited. "What do ya wanna do?"

"We were wonderin' if we could give Sora and Kairi a tour," Goofy said.

"A tour? Jeepers, that's a great idea!" Roger exclaimed. He ran over, grabbed Sora and Kairi's hands, and tugged them quickly away. Sora and Kairi had to run to keep up.

"Over there is our movie theater!" Roger exclaimed, still gripping onto Sora and Kairi, and only motioning with his head. Sora looked to see an extravagant golden theater playing something called "Fun and Fancy Free". Before he could even examine more, Roger pulled him and Kairi further.

"That's the Toon Hotel, the tallest building in Toontown!" Roger exclaimed, motioning towards the other side of the street. Kairi saw what was indeed the largest building: a tall purple skyscraper adorned with flagpoles, awnings, and hundreds of windows. It poked up into the clouds, which seemed to have even more smiling faces in them.

As Roger pointed out every building and street corner, Sora was desperately trying to look for a Keyhole or some way to get free. Then he suddenly noticed something that Roger had not pointed out. It was a big metal box, the size of a building, that looked out of place in the colorful Toontown. It was made from dark, colorless metal, and was surrounded in warning and safety signs. There was an ominous feel about it.

"Hey," Sora said, "what's that big metal box?"

Upon hearing Sora, Roger suddenly stopped. He gently released Sora and Kairi's hands, and turned to look at them with a more serious look on his face. Donald and Goofy jogged up to them as they all looked towards the box.

"That," he said in a serious tone Sora never thought he'd hear out of Roger, "is where we hold the Dip."

"What's Dip?" Kairi asked.

"A long time ago, someone made an acid that can seriously hurt people and destroy property," Donald explained. "We call it the Dip. They tried to use it as a weapon against Toontown. Fortunately we managed to stop them, but we couldn't get rid of the Dip, so we just got it all into a vat and sealed it off. Since then Toontown has grown and we just kind of built around it, but no one dares go near it."

Sora looked at the ominous box, now feeling even more uneasy. "Wow," he said. "If there were any place I'd want to protect from a Heartless attack…"

Roger nodded. "It's the most secure place in Toontown. If that building were to fall…" his voice trailed off.

Kairi felt uneasy, but something inside her felt even worse than she normally would have. It was a strange feeling… in her head… but she managed to shake it.

"Sorry if I upset you, Roger," Sora said sincerely.

Roger's smile grew back and he waved his arm. "Pfft," he said, spitting all over, "no harm done. You were curious. Can't fault you for that." Then he looked up at the sun, which looked like it was lowering in the sky. "Oh!" he exclaimed, his usual joviality back, "there is one place you have to see! If we hurry, we'll be in time for the show!" He grabbed Sora and Kairi again, and they had a moment to glance at each other before he pulled them along down the street again with Donald and Goofy following.

About a block later, Roger stopped. Sora and Kairi caught their breaths as Roger proudly displayed the establishment in front of them: a purple building with gold trimming.

"The Ink and Paint Club!" Roger cheered. "Hurry! Come in! Come in!" He turned and darted inside the building.

"What's so important in there?" Sora asked, still trying to catch his breath.

"Oh, that's where Roger's wife, Jessica performs," Goofy explained.

"He's never missed one of her shows," Donald added.

Sora shrugged. "Okay, might be nice to sit down and relax a bit. Why not?" he strolled into the building with his friends following. The place was a single room, dimly lit with golden light. The walls were beige with gold arches and red trim. In the center of the room was a walkway connected to a stage with a blue curtain. There were tables and chairs dotted around the room, and Roger was excitedly sitting in the one closest to the walkway. He waved them over.

Donald and Goofy sat down at one of the tables. Donald pulled out a Gummi wire and put it on the table, and started talking to Goody about it. Sora and Kairi walked together to the table adjacent to Roger's. As they approached, Sora hurried ahead and pulled out the chair for Kairi.

"Thank you," she said, turning a bit red as she sat down and Sora pushed the chair in. He then sat down on the other side of the table.

"This is nice," Sora said. "After fighting for so long, it's nice to just sit down, relax, and just hang out for a bit."

Kairi nodded. "You don't think we're slacking, do you?"

Sora shook his head. "Nah, the ship's being fixed. It's not like we can do anything. Might as well rest a bit."

Kairi eyed him. "Well, you always found excuses to slack off, Lazybones."

Sora chuckled as the lights dimmed. Roger was practically jumping out of his chair, cheering and clapping.

"He's really excited," Sora said, watching the rabbit.

"Sure," Kairi said. "it's his wife. They're in love." She felt her face get a little hot as she spoke. She looked down to see Sora's hand resting on the table, close to hers. "Their Hearts… are connected…" Without realizing, she began to reach for his hand. Then she heard some music, which snapped her back to reality. Sheepishly, she and Sora (who had not noticed her actions) looked towards the stage.

A sultry, feminine voice was then heard singing:

_"You had plenty Munny back then, didn't you?_  
_You let other women make a fool of you…"_

The blue curtain parted to reveal something that neither Sora nor Kairi were expecting: a very tall, absolutely stunning woman. She had on a shimmering red, form-fitting strapless dress, long purple gloves, and lipstick that matched her flowing red hair. Sora's eyes widened and his mouth opened a bit.

The woman continued to sing as she began slowly walking down the runway, swaying her hips to the rhythm of the song.

_"Why don't you do right_  
_Like some other men do?_  
_Get out of here_  
_Get me some Munny too…"_

Kairi was amazed. This tall, beautiful woman was not who she was expecting to see. She leaned over to Sora. "She's married to Roger?" she whispered.

"Lucky guy…" Sora muttered. It was only then that Kairi noticed Sora staring that the gorgeous redhead on stage with a dazed expression. Kairi felt her breathing quicken and her face get hot again, but for a different reason than before. She scowled slightly before sitting back in her chair, pulling her hand away from his and setting it on her lap. Jessica sang some more as she approached them.

_"Now, if you had prepared all those years ago_  
_You wouldn't be a-wanderin' now from door to door_

_"Why don't you do right_  
_Like some other men do?_  
_Get out of here_  
_Get me some Munny too…"_

Jesica's half-shut eyes glanced over to Sora as she smiled coyly. Sora smiled back sheepishly. Jessica then turned to face Roger, who was also staring at her with a large smile and a blissful expression. Slowly and carefully, Jessica stepped off the walkway with her tall high heels and down to Roger's table. Still singing, she rubbed the rabbit's head and massaged his ears.

_"Get out of here_  
_Get me some Munny too…"_

Jessica then swayed around in front of Roger and leaned down next to him, cuddling up against his face as she finished her song.

_"Why don't you do right_  
_Like some other men… do?"_

As Jessica puckered her lips for the final note, she placed a kiss of Roger's cheek. The music ended and Jessica stood up straight again. Roger leapt and cheered while Sora, Goofy, and Donald applauded. Kairi hesitated a moment, then clapped as well.

"Oh, Jessica, darling, you were magnificent!" Roger cheered, hugging her across the waist.

"Oh Honey Bunny, you always say such nice things!" Jessica replied, still in her sultry voice and returning the hug. As the hug broke, she turned and waved to Donald and Goofy. "Hello, boys. Long time no see."

"Hiya, Jessica!" Goofy replied as he and Donald waved back.

Jessica then turned to look at Sora and Kairi. "Roger, are you going to introduce me to your friends?"

Sora stood up quickly and extended his hand. "I'm Sora," he said excitedly. Unbeknownst to any of the others, Kairi shot him a look.

Jessica took his and and gently shook it. "Charmed," she said. Then she looked to Kairi, who slowly extended her hand.

"Kairi," she said quickly. Jessica shook her hand and smiled at her warmly.

"So," Jessica began, turning back to Roger, "what's the occasion?"

Roger hoped out f his seat. "Our friends are here to get some work done on the Gummi Ship. And fight off any of those dastardly Heartless."

"Oh, they can fight those beasts?" Jessica asked. "That's great. I saw some over by the Dip Tank. Not enough to cause any problems, but one can't be too careful…"

Kairi stood up and activated Destiny's Embrace. "If there are Heartless over there, it's probably best if we take them out before they can cause any damage," she said quickly.

Jessica nodded. "Good luck, and be safe."

Kairi nodded to Jessica, still feeling slightly jealous. She hurried to the exit as Donald and Goofy drew their weapons and followed her. Sora stayed a little longer, but activated his Keyblade and followed.

* * *

It was not long before the group arrived back at the metal box they had been warned about. Sora and Kairi held their Keyblades ready as they carefully scanned the street and surrounding buildings.

"I don't see any Heartless," Sora said.

"They might be behind the box," Kairi suggested. "Let's go, but be careful."

Carefully, Sora and Kairi pushed past the warning signs and safety barriers. Donald stepped around a sign, and Goofy tripped over a barrier before getting back up. They made sure that each step was a soft one, not knowing what dangers were in store.

They were right next to the Dip Tank now, and Sora now noted how big it was: it was a perfect metal cube, easily two stories tall. As he looked up at the top, Kairi suddenly stopped in front of him.

"What is it?" Sora asked, looking down.

Kairi motioned to a pair of Shadows, a pair of Cogs, and two pale green Acidic Orchestras, which hovered over the ground. Both Sora and Kairi drew their Keyblades back, and, in unison, threw them at the Heartless.

The Keyblades struck the Cogs, knocking them both over. As the Heartless turned to face Sora and Kairi, the Keyblades returned to their hands and they leapt into battle. A Shadow lunged at Kairi, but Donald stepped in and swatted it away with his wand. Kairi took the opportunity to dispose of one of the fallen Cogs.

One of the Acidic Orchestras focused, and began charging a spherical ball of swirling, sickly green acid below it. With a shake, it flung the ball at Sora, who dove out of the way and allowed the ball to splash onto the ground, popping and fizzling as the acid burned away at some of the concrete and then evaporated. Sora extended Bare Necessities into the air and slammed it down on top of the floating green menace, hitting it to the ground and causing it to ricochet back up dazed. Sora pointed his Keyblade right at at the stunned foe and cast Blizzard, destroying it.

The other Cog got up, and began charging at Kairi, rolling across the ground like a wheel. Kairi noticed it and raised her Keyblade to block, but the impact of the ram pushed her backwards. She swung Destiny's Embrace to cleave the Heartless, but it caught the blade between two of its outer teeth and pulled, yanking Kairi to the ground. She grunted as she landed on the hard ground, feeling a sting as she skinned one of her knees. The Cog attempted another ram, but Kairi got to her knees and swiped at the right time, slamming the Cog into the Dip Tank. There was a loud, echoing clang from the impact, but the Heartless was destroyed.

Goofy crushed the other shadow with his shield as Sora and Donald faced off against the last Acidic Orchestra. It spun around, flinging drops of stinging acid. Sora blocked most with his Keyblade, but felt some of the burning liquid hit his forearms. He shook it off, gritting his teeth from the pain and looking down at the injury, which was equivalent to a small second-degree burn. Donald was not so lucky in blocking and go acid on his forehead and wings, and quacked loudly as he began running around and shaking the acid off.

Sora dove at the Acidic Orchestra, stabbing it with Bare Necessities. The Heartless was knocked back, then began charging another ball of acid.

"Oh no you don't!" Sora exclaimed, jumping up and hitting the Acidic Orchestra. Just as it perished, it launched the ball right at the Dip Tank. Sora gasped as she saw the projectile's course, but he was up in the air and unable to stop it. Donald stopped flailing, and Kairi's eyes grew wide as they watched the ball fly at the box.

Just before it made contact, Goofy dove in front, holding his shield in front of him. The ball splashed onto the shield, fizzling slightly before dissipating.

Sora, Donald, and Kairi all exhaled in relief. "Good block, Goofy," Sora said.

Goofy gave a thumbs-up. "Gawrsh," he replied.

"You okay?" a voice called. Sora looked to see Roger and Jessica walking up to them.

"Yep," Donald assured.

"That was a close one," Jessica said looking towards the Dip Tank. "I'm glad I got you heroes over here." Kairi huffed a bit when she saw Sora blush.

Suddenly, Sora's blush faded when everyone heard a rumbling sound. The ground shook slightly, and everyone extended their arms to keep their balance.

"What was that?" Kairi asked, looking at the ground.

Another thundering sound and small quake occurred, this one making Jessica lean against Roger for support.

"Jeepers!" Roger said.

There was another noise, this one very loud and close, and the ground shook again. Without warning, the concrete cracked before them.

"Move!" Sora commanded. He and the others hurried back onto the street, where a final booming noise and violent quake split the crack open. Black liquid poured out of it and began to rise up into the air. Jessica held Roger close as black ooze poured out of the ground, rose into the air, and began to morph and distort. Purple smoke enveloped the form, and a green glow emerged from within the slime. Soon the slime began to morph into arms and claws that dripped down, and grew a round head with elongated, sharp horns. Green glowing in the form of two massive eyes and a jagged, grinning mouth shone out from within.

"Oh no!" Donald and Goofy exclaimed together.

"Oh my goodness!" Jessica exclaimed. "It's the Shadow Blot! It's back!" Roger stood in front of Jessica, motioning for her to get back.

"What is that? A Heartless?" Sora called.

"Worse!" Donald quacked. "It's the Shadow Blot! An evil the King defeated long ago! All of these Heartless must have brought it back!"

The Shadow Blot, now fully formed, roared and extended its claws. It looked down on the group.

"Roger, take Jessica and get somewhere safe!" Kairi yelled. Roger obeyed, taking Jessica by the hand and running away with her.

The Shadow Blot roared again as it slammed its fist down. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all jumped out of the way, just barely avoiding the massive blow. Sora sliced at the wrist, his Keyblade making noticeable marks in the Shadow Blot's writhing skin. The Blot extended its digits and swept its hand, smacking Sora with the back of its clawed hand and knocking him down. It then raised its hands and pointed its claws towards the group. Suddenly, each claw extended into spear-like weapons that stabbed down at them. Sora and Goofy managed to block them, Donald managed to dodge, but Kairi was clipped by it and felt the sting as the bladed claw cut her back. She fell forward and landed on her knees, gripping her injury.

"Goofy!' Donald cried. "Thunder Harpoon!"

Goofy nodded and readied his shield, angling it upwards towards the Shadow Blot's face. Donald weaved through the claws and jumped onto the shield, pointing his staff forward. He extended his knees as Goofy pushed the shield, propelling Donald right at the enemy, quacking a furious battle cry. Just as the tip of the staff sunk into the Shadow Blot's liquid form, Donald cast Thunder and sent a pulse of electricity arcing through the Blot's face. The Shadow Blot screeched as its grinning green mouth dropped into a disgusted frown, and pulled its claws away from the ground and began clawing at its face as it arched backwards. Donald dropped to the ground unhurt as he, Goofy, Sora, and Kairi gathered together.

Sora and Kairi pointed their Keyblades at the Shadow Blot and cast Fire and Blizzard respectively. The spells struck the Shadow Blot, who recoiled, but then roared in fury. Its mouth shaped into a grin again as its claws began glowing green. It raised its hands and quickly pointed them at the group, blasting jets of acid. Sora was hit backwards, Goofy blocked it, Donald jumped out of the way, and Kairi attempted to block it with her Keyblade, but she was hit in the arm. She yelped in pain as she shook and patted her arm, getting all the acid off, but leaving a sizable red mark with a few ugly blisters on her. She looked up at the Shadow Blot and charged.

"Kairi! Wait!" Sora called as he got up.

Kairi jumped up and slashed at the Shadow Blot's claws, cutting off three digits. It roared as it recoiled its damaged limb. Kairi landed back on the ground, but did not notice the other hand sweeping the ground right towards her. Before she knew what was happening, Kairi was struck with massive force from the side, a blow that made her scream out as she was smacked right into the side of a building across the street.

"Kairi!" Sora cried out, reaching out towards her. He started to run towards her, but the Shadow Blot slammed its fist down into Sora's path, forcing him to stop and defend against the incoming attacks. Kairi winced in pain for a moment before she felt a dull, but strong pain in the back of her head and passed out.

* * *

Kairi groaned, blinking her eyes open. Her vision was fuzzy, and everything seemed to be obscured by a grey film. She opened her eyes to see Sora, Donald, and Goofy fighting the Shadow Blot, slashing and casting spells. Kairi groaned again, feeling the pain in the back of her head. She slowly reached up and rubbed it as she started to stand up.

"Well, well, well. Someone's looking desperate!" a voice echoed.

Kairi groaned again, this time out of annoyance. She turned her head to see one of the triangular windows on the building beside her glow, then flash. Bill Cipher sat there, his arms crossed condescendingly behind his back.

"I thought I told you to leave me alone," Kairi huffed.

"I can help you," Bill said in a singsong voice. "I know all the tips and tricks of advanced Keyblade mastery. And from the looks of it, you need all the help you can get right now."

Kairi was about to tell him off again, but glanced over to the battle. She saw the Shadow Blot melt its fist into the ground, then erupt it back up like a geyser underneath Goofy's feet, sending him flying. It shot spikes at Donald, and grabbed Sora and slammed him back down in what looked like a very painful attack.

Kairi hesitated only a second longer, then turned back to Bill. "What crazy thing do you want, anyway?"

Bill materialized his cane and twirled it. "I'd like a drink," he said quickly.

Kairi paused. She stared at Bill for a moment, unsure of what she had just heard. "Huh?" she questioned. "A… drink?"

"Yeah, a drink," Bill said. "I need some refreshment. I'm parched. I allow you to fight like you've never fought before, and in return, you help me get something to quench my thirst."

Kairi raised an eyebrow, still skeptical. "I don't know…" she muttered.

"Seems to me that one little drink is a small price to pay to learn the secrets of Keyblade mastery," Bill said, putting away his cane. "Besides, don't you want to show Keyblade Boy how valuable you can be? How he shouldn't have eyes for any girl… but you?"

Kairi looked back towards the fight. Sora managed to launch a spinning attack right into the Shadow Blot's eye, causing it to flail back, but slap Sora backwards as it did so. Then Kairi noticed Jessica and Roger watching from behind the corner of a building.

"Tick tock, kid," Bill said, extending his had. A blue flame erupted in it.

Kairi glanced towards Bill, then back at Sora. She was breathing heavy, trying to decide. She needed the help. This enemy was too strong for her. She whirled back around to Bill.

"Fine!" she said, grabbing his hand. The blue flame spread to her hand as well, though there was no pain. She shook the thin hand.

"Thanks, kid!" Bill exclaimed. "I'll take over now!"

"Wha-" Kairi started before she felt Bill tug on her arm. She felt a strange, tingling, uncomfortable sensation as she was pulled forward, shutting her eyes. When the sensation vanished, she opened her eyes again.

Sitting next to the building…was her. It was her hair, her clothes, her skin… her body. Kairi gasped and looked down at herself. It looked the same, but was tinted an off-white and was transparent. Kairi grabbed at her clothes, only to feel her fingers pass right through.

"What's happening?!" Kairi exclaimed in fear. "What did you do?!"

Suddenly, her body began to rise. It stood up, eyes closed, with a large smile on its face. As it lifted its head, its eyes opened to reveal two glowing yellow eyes with elongated black pupils. Her body grinned a toothy grin and laughed… in Bill's voice.

"What are you doing?!" Kairi exclaimed. "I thought we had a deal!"

Bill, in Kairi's body, nodded. "We still do. I'll help beat up old big, black, and gruesome over there. I can't have him here, getting in the way of all I've got planned." Bill stepped forward, a bit clumsily. "Woah," he said, regaining his balance. "It's been so long since I've inhabited a body. And two eyes? This thing's deluxe!" Kairi's body smiled again. "And I haven't even gotten to the best part…" Bill-Kairi extended his hand and summoned Destiny's Embrace.

"I can't believe this is happening!" Kairi exclaimed.

"Believe it, Paopu," Bill-Kairi said. "Now sit back and watch the show!" With that, Bill-Kairi turned and charged at the Shadow Blot.

The Shadow Blot spewed acid again, but Sora was able to spin his Keyblade in a circle fast enough to block it. Goofy threw his shield at the monster's eye, hitting it and causing the Blot to recoil, place its hand over its eye, and swing with its other hand.

"Here I come!" Bill-Kairi shouted. Sora, Donald, and Goofy looked to see what appeared to be Kairi, running up with her Keyblade firmly gripped. Her voice was the same to them, but her emotion seemed off for someone who was just pummeled into a wall.  
"Kairi, be careful!" Sora called.

"Yeah, it's really tough!" Donald added.

Bill-Kairi jumped up into the air, far higher than normal, and lunged right at the Shadow Blot's face. It grinned in anticipation as it pulled its hand away from its eye, getting ready to claw its attacker to ribbons once she was close enough.

However, as the Shadow Blot's claws began to close in, Bill-Kairi cloaked Destiny's Embrace in blue flame and spun in place, slicing all around them. The Shadow Blot roared in pain as it pulled its damaged hands back, taking a moment to glance at the burning wounds.

Bill-Kairi then struck the Shadow Blot between the eyes. The Keyblade flashed before releasing a golden burst of energy that exploded out, causing Sora, Donald, and Goofy to avert their eyes. Bill-Kairi dropped to the ground, and the Shadow Blot roared and writhed as it clutched its face.

"Now's your chance! Go!" Bill-Kairi said in Kairi's voice. Unbeknownst to their onlookers, they were grinning.

Donald cast a Thunder spell, striking the Shadow Blot on the hands, causing it to pull them away and reveal its drooping, damaged face. It opened its glowing maw and began spitting acid down, but Sora and the others dodged the stream. Sora made his way to Goofy, who held up his shield. Sora hit it just right with his Keyblade, sending a shockwave that dispersed the acid flow. Goofy then lifted his shield up above his head, and Sora got on top of it. Goofy propelled Sora as he jumped up. Bill-Kairi jumped too, able to reach the same height without help. The two slashed together, sending white shockwaves traveling through the air, crossing through the Shadow Blot's head. The Shadow Blot froze as the two fell back to the ground, then two long, glowing lines split open on its face. The Phantom Blot roared again, but it gurgled out and turned into a drowning screech as its inky, writhing form collapsed on itself, melting down back into liquid. Its black ooze leaked down into the crack it came from, and a deep growl could be heard just before the ground sealed closed once more.

Sora wiped his brow. "Whew. That was intense." He looked over to Bill-Kairi. "Kairi, that was amazing! Where did you learn to do that?"

Bill-Kairi smiled, trying to replicate Kairi's small, meek smile as opposed to Bill's exaggerated, toothy one. "Just something Yen Sid taught me," Bill-Kairi said, again mimicking Kairi's voice. "Figured now would be the best time to try it out."

Sora smiled back, but something did not feel right. Kairi always smiled so naturally, so sweetly, but her smile now seemed… off. As if she were gloating, yet trying to restrain her reactions. Before Sora could ask any more questions, Roger and Jessica ran up.

"You guys all right?" Roger asked.

"We are thanks to Kairi!" Donald cheered.

Roger bounded around laughing in celebration, but Jessica looked at Kairi with a strange expression. She did her best to look friendly, but she looked a touch confused.

As everyone celebrated the victory, Kairi looked on. She breathed heavily, not sure of what to make of what was happening. Bill had technically kept his end of the bargain; he had made her fight with what looked to be some of his own magical power. But he had not taught her anything, and had taken control of her body without consent. Kairi huffed and floated over towards her body.

"Bill!" she yelled. Bill-Kairi turned to look at her, and grinned evilly. No one else heard her.

"Give me back my body, and I'll get you that drink!" she said sternly. She tried to put her foot down, but it just phased through the street.

Bill-Kairi chuckled. "Oh Paopu. Don't you get it? This body is mine now!"

Kairi gasped. She tried to grab at Bill-Kairi, but her spectral hand passed right through.

"As for that drink," Bill-Kairi continued, "I'll be getting it myself. A nice, refreshing Dip drink."

Kairi's eyes shot open wide as she gasped again. She glanced over at the Dip Tank. "What are you saying?" she asked worriedly. "What are you going to do?"

Bill-Kairi's grin grew bigger. "I'm gonna quench my thirst… for destruction! With this Keyblade, I'll be able to bust down that tin can and flood this whole stinking world with hot, spicy Dip!"

"But the people!" Kairi cried. "You can't…"

"I'm gonna liberate this world!" Bill-Kairi continued, cutting Kairi off. "Soon it'll be a barren, Dipped wasteland! A breeding ground for Heartless and Darkness! And with all the pathways branching off of this world, that'll lead to so many worlds following suit! I'll remake the worlds! Better worlds! Dark parties that never end with a host that never dies! And I'll be able to stop playing second-fiddle to that stupid creep!"

"Creep? Who are you talking about?" Kairi questioned, her voice getting more frantic.

Bill-Kairi ignored her, and turned to face Sora and the others. "Hey everyone," Bill-Kairi said, subduing their maniacal grin. "Let's head back to the Ink and Paint Club and celebrate. Last one there's a rotten egg!"

Roger took off like a shot, with Donald close behind. Goofy chuckled and hurried forward. Sora laughed and jogged towards the Club, though he was slow from clearly being exhausted. Jessica was nearby, not able to run particularly fast due to her wearing high heels.

Bill-Kairi stayed put, eyeing the Dip Tank. Kairi shook her fist.

"I'll stop you, Bill!" she yelled. "You hear me? I'll stop you!"

"How can you stop me, kid…" Bill-Kairi muttered, the head turning slowly to face Kairi with the insane grin plastered once again on the face, "…if you don't exist?" Bill-Kairi laughed, then turned and jogged closer to the Dip Tank.

"No!" Kairi cried, floating as fast as she could after her body. Then she stopped and looked over towards the direction Sora and the others were heading. She paused for a moment considering which to pursue, then decided that she could not face Bill-Kairi on her own, and raced to catch up with Sora and the others.

* * *

Sora jogged slowly, his legs and back sore from the fight. He wore a confused and unsure expression on his face. Kairi just did not seem to be acting right. He could not seem to explain it, but she felt off. He slowed to a walk, favoring one of his legs.

"Hey, kid," Sora heard a voice say. He looked over and up to see Jessica looking down at him. The radiant glow of the sunset shone from behind her, illuminating her figure.

"Hey, Jessica," Sora said shyly.

Jessica glanced forward, then back down at Sora. "I think there might be something wrong with your friend," she said.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Actually, I was thinking the same thing," he said. "She's not…"

"…acting like she normally would?" Jessica finished.

Sora shrugged and looked forward. "I mean, she's still being nice and all, but something's wrong. She's acting like she's hiding something. And where did she learn those moves? I've been training with Master Yen Sid for longer than she has, and I've never seen any magic like that before." He looked back up at Jessica. "How do you know something's up?"

Jessica shrugged. "Woman's instinct, I suppose? Women notice how other women act around certain men, and she's just not acting like she normally does around you."

Sora placed his hand on his chest. "Me? How does she normally act around me?"

Jessica chuckled slightly. "Honey, if you don't know, I'm not gonna tell you." Sora raised an eyebrow in confusion, but Jessica continued.

"Just keep an eye on her. Note any differences in how she speaks or acts. And if you can, try to see if there's any correlation between what she says or does and things you've already encountered. She could be acting in reaction to something, or…" Jessica trailed off when she saw that Sora had stopped and was thinking quietly behind her.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I just realized…" Sora began, "that she said she learned those moves from Yen Sid."

"Yeah?" Jessica asked. "Is that weird?"

"Not her learning the moves, but how she explained it. She said that she learned them from 'Yen Sid'. But we always call him '_Master_ Yen Sid'. It's just the formality we use as his students."

Jessica put her hands on her curved hips and raised an eyebrow. "Think that's significant? Or did she just get hit too hard on he head?"

Sora shook his head. "No. There's something else here… I feel like… at least a little of what I saw her do… was familiar…"

* * *

Kairi floated up to see Sora and Jessica standing still in the middle of the street, talking and looking concerned. She felt a bit jealous that Sora was talking to Jessica, but she did not let the thought get much further than that.

"Sora!" she cried. "Sora! It's me! Help!"

Neither Sora or Jessica reacted. They just kept talking, both looking lost in thought.

"It's on the tip of my tongue…" Sora was saying.

"Sora! It's Bill! Bill Cipher! He's controlling my body and he's going to destroy the whole world with Dip!" Kairi yelled, hoping that something was getting through to Sora. "Please hear me!" She felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. "Please…"

"Considering all the wacky places you kids have probably been to, there could be a whole number of things she reminds you of," Jessica said to Sora.

"Jessica!" Kairi shouted in desperation, tears beginning to flow from her eyes. "Please! Hear me!"

Neither of them reacted. Kairi felt lost. She slowly drifted down and fell to her knees, not passing through the street now.

"Please…" she sobbed. She put her hand on her chest. She exhaled deeply. She felt her Heart beating under her chest. She concentrated, and focused on the Light she felt around Sora. "Hear me," she muttered, hoping some Light would shine through.

Sora stood there, still puzzled, when a thought drifted into his head. He remembered the blue fire and golden energy that surrounded Destiny's Embrace. That was what was familiar. He had just seen them recently… they were used by…

Sora's head shot up as his eyes opened wide. He gasped as his Heart began pounding. He whirled around.

"What is it, kid?" Jessica asked. "Did you figure it out?"

"Where's Kairi?" Sora said frantically. They both looked in the direction they had come. The sun was now almost completely down now, and the dark sky dotted with large stars began to fade in overhead. A cold wind blew as they saw the street behind them was deserted.

"I thought she was behind us," Jessica replied.

"I know where I saw that magic before!" Sora said. "Bill! Bill Cipher!"

Kairi's head perked up. She wiped the invisible tears from her eyes.

"Who?" Jessica asked.

"No time to explain!" Sora said quickly, activating his Keyblade. "Kairi's in danger! All of Toontown's in danger! I need you to go get Donald and Goofy as fast as you can! We need to get back to the Dip Tank!"

Jessica nodded. "Good luck," she said before turning around and hurrying toward the Ink and Paint Club.  
Sora, completely ignoring his exhaustion and injuries, sprinted as fast as he could back towards the Dip Tank. Little did he know that Kairi was following close behind.

"Sora… thank you," she whispered.

* * *

When Sora reached the Dip Tank, the sun was down and a smiling moon rose over the horizon, illuminating the dark, yet still colorful streets of Toontown. He ran right towards the building, then stopped about where the Shadow Blot had emerged from.

Standing in front of the building, wielding a Keyblade that was glowing with blue flame, was Kairi. Her back was turned towards the street, and she raised the Keyblade and rammed it into the side of the metal box. There was a flash of golden light and a loud screech. When the light dissipated, Sora noticed a large dent in the building, too big to have just been caused by the single blow. She had been hitting it repeatedly, and it was clear that she was making progress.

"Come on," he heard her mutter in a distorted voice. "I haven't got all night!" She raised her Keyblade for another blow.

"Hey!" Sora shouted. Kairi stopped and slowly turned, looking at Sora.

"Hey there," she said in what sounded closer to her normal voice. She smiled.

"Back off!" Sora said, brandishing his blade.

"Oh…" Kairi said. "This isn't what it looks like. There were some Heartless, and I…"

"Save it," Sora muttered, gripping his Keyblade tighter. "No more games… Bill."

Kairi looked surprised for a moment, then her smile changed into a wide, toothy one. He opened her eyes wider, revealing two yellow eyes with elongated black irises. She began to laugh, but it was unmistakably Bill Cipher's laugh.

"Took you long enough, Keyblade!" Bill-Kairi laughed. "You're not the sharpest key on the ring, are you?"

"I'm telling you once and telling you now," Sora growled. "Get out of Kairi's body."

Even Bill-Kairi was taken aback by Sora's ferocity. It was something unlike Sora. Still, Bill-Kairi simply laughed.

"Not a chance, Keyblade! Once I'm through this stupid box, all of Toontown, including you and your little friends, are gonna be swimming in Dip! And since Poupu's body will be Dipped too, I'll just find a new vessel when I spread the Darkness to the next world!"

"No!" Sora shouted, rushing forward with a sudden burst of speed. Bill-Kairi raised Destiny's Embrace in time for the two Keyblades to clash, sending a shockwave through the air. Sora pushed off and swung his Keyblade again as Bill-Kairi swung theirs, the two weapons clanging together in the night air. The two began swordfighting, with Bill-Kairi applying exploding bursts to the swings to fore Sora back. Sora allowed it, knowing that if he stepped back, he'd be drawing Bill-Kairi away from the Dip Tank.

Bill-Kairi swung low, creating an explosion that knocked Sora backwards and into the air. He landed and skidded as Bill-Kairi charged, swinging rapidly. Sora managed to block most of the swings, but a few fiery strikes hit his arms and chest. Sora retaliated, cutting through Bill-Kairi's defense and slashing across their gut. Bill-Kairi yelped as they jumped back, and quickly examined the area, making sure no serious damage had been done. Bill-Kairi then looked back up at Sora, grinning.

"Careful, Keyblade," Bill-Kairi cackled. "You don't want to hurt Poupu now, do you?"

Sora swung his Keyblade down, and Bill-Kairi blocked.

"No," Sora said angrily. "But I know that, if it means saving her and this world, Kairi wouldn't want me to hold back!"

Sora dropped to the ground and kicked Bill-Kairi's legs out from under them. Bill-Kairi landed on their rear with a grunt, then jumped right back up and attacked. Bill-kairi pushed Sora back, then cast a blue Fire spell at him Sora was hit in the chest, knocking him backwards and into the street. Bill-Kairi charged and leapt into the air, positioning Destiny's Embrace to stab Sora from above. Suddenly, a flurry of sharp ice struck Bill-Kairi from the side, knocking them out of the air and onto the ground. Bill-Kairi got up as they and Sora both looked to see Donald and Goofy marching up, with Roger and Jessica behind them.

"And there's more where that came from, you triangular menace!" Donald quacked.

"You're meddlin', big time," Goofy said in a deep tone, holding up his shield.

Bill-Kairi laughed. "You want meddling? I'll show you meddling!" Bill-Kairi then stabbed Destiny's Embrace into the ground, creating a circular area of blue flame that spread across the street. Roger and Jessica jumped out of range. The fire burned underneath Sora, Donald, and Goofy's feet, causing them to hop around and take constant damage. Bill-Kairi then slammed their Keyblade to the ground, creating a golden explosion that pushed everyone backwards. Sora was violently blasted out of the flaming circle, but Donald and Goofy were caught. Goofy jumped up and threw his shield under him, protecting him from the flames as he sledded right at Bill-Kairi. He kicked up as if he were on a skateboard, popping an ollie with the shield and ramming into Bill-Kairi, pushing them back. Donald jumped up and, while still airborne, cast a flurry of magic fireworks that caught Bill-Kairi in a barrage of small blasts.

Sora groaned as he got back up and watched Bill-Kairi retaliate, knocking Donald and Goofy back into the circle of flames. Sora gripped his Keyblade, but hesitated.

Bill was right. Sora did not want to hurt Kairi, but he did not see any other way to bring Bill-Kairi down long enough to get Bill out and Kairi back in. He needed a way to just daze her without causing too much damage, but there was not anything he could think to use.

Unless…

Sora looked at Bill-Kairi, and saw an oval-shaped bulge in one of the pockets of their dress. Sora exhaled as he readied his Keyblade, knowing he only had one shot at what he was trying to do. He ran forward towards Bill-Kairi, then arched his Keyblade behind him. When he was about arm's reach away, Sora swung his Keyblade up. The very tip of the Keyblade pressed up against the dress and underneath the bulge, pushing the item up and out of the pocket. Bill-Kairi turned with a look of confusion as a Summon Gem flew up into the air. Sora caught it with his free hand and rolled out of the way. Bill-Kairi struck him with an exploding swing, knocking him back towards the Dip Tank. Before Bill-Kairi could pursue, Donald attacked from the side and diverted their attention.

Sora checked the gem to make sure it was the one he was aiming for, and he was right. He quickly deactivated Bare Necessities and pressed it to his chest.

"Power!" Sora called.

Sora looked up to find himself on a sandy beach, with waves crashing against his feet. The waves grew higher as a rumbling shook them. Sora looked out onto the water to see a massive tidal wave roaring close. On top was a familiar face surfing the wave. The wave crashed down, and the figure transformed into a hawk and flew towards Sora. Sora grinned as the hawk shouted and transformed again.

"Chee-ho!" the figure called, landing in the shallows in front of Sora. Maui stood straight and flexed, gripping his magic fishhook in his hand.

"What's up, little buddy?" Maui asked, rubbing Sora's hair.

"Maui," Sora said, remembering the situation. "Kairi's in trouble. Some monster is possessing her body, and I can't keep her down without hurting her. Can you help?"

"One rescue, coming up," Maui said, grabbing his hook with both hands. The environment changed back to the Toontown street, where Bill-Kairi blocked an attack from Goofy and pushed him back.

"Let's put out that creepy-looking fire first," Maui said. He waved his hook forward, and a large wave of sea water rushed from it. The water drenched the street, putting out the blue fire.

Bill-Kairi looked over with confusion. "What the-"

"Here we go!" Maui shouted, jumping into battle. "Chee-hoo!" Maui blasted another wave, catching Bill-Kairi up in it and pushing them back. when the water went down, Bill-Kairi was soaked and dizzy.

Bill-Kairi spat the salty water out of their mouth. "Yuck!" they exclaimed. They looked up at Maui and aimed Destiny's Embrace at him before casting a blue Fire spell. Maui, in a flash, turned into a small lizard, causing the spell to miss him. He scurried over towards Bill-Kairi, then transformed back. He threw his hook around Bill-Kairi's waist, then picked them up and began spinning around in circles.

"Hey! Woah!" Bill-Kairi shouted. "Stop!"

Maui just chuckled as he kept spinning, careful not to make himself dizzy.

"I'm gonna be sick!" Bill-Kairi shouted. Maui stopped spinning and transformed, making the hook disappear. Bill-Kairi whirled around in loops, clutching their head and doing their best to keep their balance. As they turned, they saw a strange sight: Maui's body, but with the head of a shark.

"Shark head!" Maui mused.

"Wha-" Bill-Kairi started.

"It's called a distraction," Maui said, smiling. "Now, Sora!"

Before Bill-Kairi could even react, Sora rushed up and rammed them on the back with the blunt edge of his Keyblade, slamming Bill-Kairi to the ground. As soon as they hit, Maui splashed them one more time.

"You're welcome!" Maui called before vanishing in an array of colored light.

* * *

Kairi watched as her body collapsed to the ground. When Maui sent the final splash, she saw Bill Cipher fly out of the body and careen through the air and out of sight. Kairi knew she did not have much time and charged at her body, jumping towards it. Suddenly, everything went black as she suddenly felt nauseous, sore, and tired.

Kairi groaned as she opened her eyes, seeing the cold Toontown street pressed up against her face. She pressed the palm of one of her hands against the ground and began pushing up, before realizing what was happening.

Kairi's eyes shot open as she bolted upright on her knees. She saw Sora, Donald, and Goofy, all before her, take a step back. Kairi felt her body, patting her dress.

"I'm back!" she exclaimed. "I'm in my body again!" she looked up at Sora. "Sora, you did it!"

"Prove you're Kairi," Donald quacked, pointing his staff at her.

"No," Sora said, smiling. "It's her." He extended his hand, and Kairi took it. Slowly, Sora helped her up.

"You okay?" Sora asked.

Kairi groaned. "No. I hurt all over."

"Sorry," Goofy said sheepishly.

"Don't apologize," Kairi said. "You did what you had to do, and I'm glad you did."

"What happened, Kairi?" Donald quacked.

Kairi hung her head. "Bill followed us from Gravity Falls," she said. "He said that he had knowledge, ancient knowledge, of Keyblade wielders and their techniques. I was desperate to help you, and he tricked me. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Sora said, putting his arm under hers to help her stand. "We all make mistakes. But you don't need any ancient knowledge to be a great Keyblade wielder. You're already one."

Kairi smiled and blushed. However, her smile quickly faded when they all heard a laugh behind them. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi all turned.

Before them was a Shadow Heartless, twitching and spasming uncontrollably. Its eyes glowed a brighter yellow than usual, and the sounds came from its dark figure.

"This isn't the last you'll see of me!" Bill Cipher's voice shouted from the Heartless. "Big things are coming! You can't stop me! And most of all, you can't stop… him."

"We'll see about that," Sora snapped, pointing his Keybalde upwards. He cast a Thunder spell, and the lightning bolt struck the Heartless and destroyed it.

Donald cast a Cure spell on Kairi, who arched her back. Sora let her go as she rubbed her sore arms.

"Here," Sora said, handing Kairi Maui's Summon Gem. Kairi gently took it and put it back into her pocket. She felt the other pocket and felt Toodles' Summon Gem still inside.

"Jeepers!" a voice called out. Everyone turned to see Roger and Jessica approaching. "I've seen a lot of things in Toontown, but nothing quite like that!"

"I've never seen that before, either," Jessica said, pointing towards the Dip Tank. Sora and Kairi looked to where she was pointing to see the the moonlight illuminate a white, glowing outline of a Keyhole on the ground in front of the tank, roughly where the Shadow Blot had emerged.

Sora glanced at Kairi. "Do you want to?" he asked.

Kairi shook her head and stretched her back. "No thank you. I'm too exhausted to even lift my arms."

Sora chuckled. "Imagine how I feel," he said. He lifted his Keyblade and pointed it at the Keyhole. The beam shot out as the locking sound was heard and both glowing magics vanished.

As Sora was finishing, Kairi walked over to Jessica.

"Thank you," she said. "For helping Sora. I think I misjudged you."

Jessica smiled coyly. "You have nothing to be jealous about, honey," she said. Kairi turned red. "Your Hearts are connected, like Roger's and mine are. You don't have a thing to worry about. Plus, I don't blame you for misjudging. I'm not bad, but I am drawn that way." Kairi giggled.

Then Donald heard a noise. He reached into his robes and pulled out a small device shaped like King Mickey, beeping quietly. He chortled slightly.

"Hey," he said. "I just got an alert. The Gummi Ship's done." Everyone chuckled.

"Well," Roger grinned, "let's see if Benny will make one more late-night trip."

* * *

Kairi showed Sora Toodles' Summon Gem on the trip to the Clubhouse, informing him that it would be in the pocket opposite of Maui's if he ever needed it. When they reached the Clubhouse, Roger and Jessica waved goodbye from Benny. Benny flashed his headlights, and then took off down the road.

Sora stretched his back. "Well," he remarked. "Better go look at the new and improved Gummi Ship." Together, they all walked to the Gummi Garage. Goofy flicked on a switch that turned on a light.

"Wow!" Kairi said. Before them was the Gummi Ship, now streamlined with armor plating, more blasters, more pulse canons, and an array of additional thrusters, headlights, satellite dishes, and engine parts. The wings were nearly twice as long as before. It looked ready to take on a fleet.

"Come on!' Sora cheered, running up to the ship with Kairi, Donald, and Goofy following. Upon entering, Sora jumped into the driver's seat and admired all of the shiny new buttons, switches, and screens. Donald examined the cockpit, Goofy admired all of the thruster activations, and Kairi slumped into one of the chairs.

"Let's take this baby for a spin!" Sora said, turning the ship on. The Gummi Ship hummed to life as all of the lights turned on. The screen in front of him burst static, then cleared up. However, he, as well as everyone else, were surprised when they heard voices coming from the monitor.

"Hello? Hello, hello?" a pair of voices squeaked through. Kairi got up and ran next to Sora, with Donald and Goofy huddling in to see the screen.

"Chip? Dale?" Goofy asked.

"There you are!" Chip exclaimed, jumping up and down frantically.

"We've been trying to reach you for so long!" Dale panted.

"What's up?" Sora asked.

"Master Yen Sid wants you back immediately!" Chip said loudly.

"He said it's an emergency!" Dale added.

Sora and Kairi glanced at each other with worried expressions, then back down at the screen.

"We're on our way!" Sora cried.


	11. Revelations

Maleficent tread slowly. Things were getting out of hand. All of her plans that had been formulating were put on hold, if not stopped completely. Whatever twisted plans the master had, they were certainly not compatible with her own.

"Maleficent," Pete asked, "what do we do?"

Maleficent thought about the question. She had half a mind to bail like Hades and Hook had, but she was far too fearful of the consequences. Now rumors circulated that Bill had failed, so it was unlikely he would return to the Council, lest he face the master's judgement.

"We will search," Maleficent replied. "But we will search for both his treasure… and mine. If we find his first, then we will return it to him, and his victory will be assured. With him reigning over all, we will be free to continue our goals as we see fit. However, if we find my treasure first… then I will have the power to surpass him, and we will reign on high."

Pete grinned slightly. He liked Maleficent's plan, despite understanding the risks. "Priority on the latter, I assume?" he asked.

Maleficent smiled. "Indeed," she replied. "Come. We have a long search ahead of us."

* * *

The master gripped the arms of his throne tightly, scratching into the skulls beneath his clawed fingers. Finally, his time would come once more. Once he had his precious artifact, worlds would fall to Darkness as they had so long ago. His armies would be unstoppable. His power would be unmatched. And most importantly, he would be invincible. No one would be able to stand in his way again.

However, even without the artifact, he had to begin his endeavor. It would not matter how many in his path he would have to slay, as they would all be sacrifices that would build upon his power. He just needed the right target. And he had one in mind.

The master held up his wrinkled, disgusting claw and cast his magic on the stone table before him. Green flame erupted off of the fixture, then settled. Glowing green on the table was a map, a projection of worlds nearby. The master observed his options carefully, searching for the best choice. He needed a world that had a low enough defense that he could take it with ease and without the artifact, but with a big enough population and resources to begin sacrificing to his empire. He turned his attention to the one he had in his thoughts. It disgusted him. It would be a fine thing to plunge it into Darkness.

The master leaned back on his throne, plotting. Soon, the Keyblade would be raised against him. But it would not be able to stop him. Not this time.

"Soon," the master growled. "Soon, power will course through my veins, and all will worship me! How I have longed to be a god… among mortal men…"

* * *

Sora slowly descended the new, improved Gummi Ship down in front of Yen Sid's tower. The fly back had been easy and uneventful due to the pathways being clear and the ship's repairs, but everyone was still anxious.

"I don't get it," Kairi said. "What could have happened to make Yen Sid want us back?"

"I don't know," Sora said. "But we have to make sure everyone's all right. Come on, let's hurry."

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all exited the Gummi Ship and approached the tower. The grass, bathed with twilight, began to rustle as they walked forward. Two familiar faces popped out.

"Chip! Dale!" Goofy said. "What's wrong? Is everyone all right?"

Chip nodded. "We think so, but Master Yen Sid and King Mickey seem really upset about something.

"You need to go talk with them right away!" Dale added.

Sora nodded, and hurried past his friends into the tower. Kairi followed alongside him.

"Master Yen Sid and King Mickey upset?" Sora asked. "Did we do something wrong?"

"I don't think so," Kairi replied. "We've been locking Keyholes and saving the worlds like we were supposed to. I think it would have to be pretty serious for them to call us back and say it's an emergency."

Sora nodded in agreement. "Come on, let's hurry."

Sora, Kairi, Donald and Goofy all reached the top of the tower together. The room was filled with the golden light from outside, and long shadows stretched from every item in the room. Behind his desk sat Yen Sid, his hands folded and his expression concerned. King Mickey stood next to the desk. As the group entered, King Mickey looked at them with relief.

"There you are!" King Mickey squeaked. "Thank goodness you're safe!"

Yen Sid also looked relieved. "Indeed," he said. "We feared something had happened to you when we could not contact you."

Sora bowed. "No, we're okay. Our ship just lost its communications, and we had to repair it."

Kairi bowed as well. "Master, Chip and Dale said you urgently needed to see us."

Yen Sid nodded slowly. "Yes. Your mission is no longer safe."

"What do you mean?" Sora asked.

Yen Sid closed his eyes and lowered his head. "I have been blind," he said apologetically. "An ancient Darkness that I once opposed has returned. It is the cause of the Heartless' spread."

"An ancient Darkness?" Kairi asked. Then her eyes opened wider. "That reminds me, we needed to tell you something. While we were out, we found something in the Quiet Town. It was some sort of coffin that had been wrapped in chains and buried. Donald said that it had a Light emblem etched onto it."  
Yen Sid's face tightened. "Then it is as I have feared," he said. "This evil is from a time long past, and is responsible for such horrible things." He sighed. "Do you recall, Sora, when you were first beginning your journey, that you could summon allies whose worlds had been destroyed by Darkness? The ones who turned into Summon Gems?"

Sora nodded.

"Well, this evil is the one who led the Heartless to the destruction of those worlds," Yen Sid said. "So many worlds… so many innocent people… fell to the power of his Darkness. He grew so dangerous that myself, with the aid of an ancient Keyblade master, had to step in and defeat him."

Sora and Kairi looked surprised. They had no idea that their Master was once a combatant himself, though it did make sense.

Yen Sid hung his head. "We were unable to destroy him, but we were able to seal him away in a coffin prison. The Keyblade master entrusted a retired soldier named Dorgann Klauser to be a Guardian, to watch over the coffin and ensure that he could never escape. The coffin was buried under his house. However, as I have been informed, Klauser fell ill and passed away a while ago, which weakened the power over the prison. That must explain how he was able to escape, and why the Darkness spreads now."

"So that's what's going on," Sora said. "Well, I guess we'll do stop this guy and-"

"I'm afraid not," Mater Yen Sid said solemnly. "This is no ordinary opponent. This being commands a Darkness too horrible for you to face."

Sora was about to speak up, but Kairi stepped forward. "Master, with all due respect, we may not have a choice. If this evil is as great as you say it is, then we'll need everyone to help stop it."

Yen Sid stood up slowly. "I admire your courage, young Kairi. There is no doubt, however, that he knows we are coming. There is only one way we can defeat this evil now."

"How?" Sora asked.

"He seeks an artifact," Yen Sid replied. "An ancient item of unspeakable evil that would allow him to turn any that were lost to his Darkness into his obedient slaves. With it, he could create an army unlike anything else, and he would become unstoppable. We would need to find it first, and contain it to ensure he never reaches that power."

Sora inhaled slowly, closing his eyes as he took in all the information. "Master," he said slowly, opening his eyes. "What is this evil?"

Yen Sid looked at Sora with his most serious expression. "An ancient Darkness from times long past. A being that willingly gave himself to Darkness beyond any other. A terrible tyrant. If he had a name, it has long since been lost. Now, he is known only as… the Horned King."


	12. Quiet Town II

"The Horned King…" Kairi muttered. "What a horrible name…"

"To destroy so many worlds…" Donald whispered.

"Its terrifying," Goofy whispered back.

Sora stepped forward. "Master," he said, "what do we need to do?"

Yen Sid stared at him for a moment, about to remark on how it was too dangerous, but noticed the determination in the boy's eyes and relented. "We need to find the artifact. Only then will we be able to ensure that he does not reach his former power."

"What is the artifact?" Sora asked.

"A relic of evil. The Black Cauldron. By making sacrifices to it, the Horned King would be able raise armies of Heartless and the dead to his cause. I have seen what damage he can do without it. If he were to get his hands on the Cauldron, then Darkness and Destruction would spread to more worlds than we could possibly imagine."

"Where is the Black Cauldron, Master?" Kairi asked.

"I do not know for sure," Yen Sid replied, "but I have sensed its Dark presence far off, in another collection of worlds you have yet to encounter. However, I cannot open the pathways for you this time; the power of Darkness is too strong there for my magic to work. However, you should be able to take off from either the Quiet Town or Toontown to get to the first world on that journey."

Goofy looked down to Donald. "We can go back to the Quiet Town. We can reconnect with Lightning there; maybe she can help." Donald nodded in agreement.

Sora and Kairi stood straight. "Master, we will find the Black Cauldron and bring it back here," Sora announced. "Then we will help you defeat this Horned King once and for all."

"Your courage is admirable, young one," Yen Sid complimented. "But be on your guard. No doubt the Horned King knows of us seeking the Cauldron, and he and his forces of Darkness will try and stop you. Seal as many Keyholes as you can to help hold back his armies of evil."

"Yes, Master!" Sora and Kairi said in unison.

* * *

As Donald and Goofy boarded the Gummi Ship, King Mickey pulled Kairi and Sora aside.

"Guys, listen," King Mickey said. "I've heard about the Horned King, and he's not someone to be taken lightly. Don't underestimate what he can do."

"Yes, your Majesty," Sora said before heading to the Gummi Ship.

"Oh, your Majesty," Kairi said. "I just remembered. Your friend Tootles is helping us." She pulled Tootles' summon gem out of her pocket and showed it to him.

"Well, how about that?" King Mickey said, smiling. "Take good care of him. He can give you all sorts of items, and he can even summon me!"

"Really?" Kairi beamed.

"Yep," King Mickey said. "If you ever need me, summon Tootles and pick the question mark. That'll allow me to help ya out for a little bit."

"Gee, thanks, your Majesty," Kairi said.

* * *

The Gummi Ship settled down on a green field just outside the town. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all disembarked and entered the Quiet Town along its cobblestone streets.

"Hello there," a voice said. The group turned around to see a rose-haired woman walking towards them.

"Lightning!" Kairi said. "How is everything?"

Lightning put her hands on her hips and exhaled. "Exhausting. The Heartless keep appearing, and in greater numbers."

"Do you need some help?" Sora asked.

Lightning hesitated, but replied. "Yeah, actually. They've been appearing a lot around where we found the coffin. If you go with me to fight them off, I'll tell you what I learned from my contact along the way."

"Sounds like a deal!" Sora said as he and Kairi activated their Keyblades. Lightning chortled slightly, and they began walking towards the woods. Kairi watched a pair of children playing with a ball, colored yellow with a blue stripe and a red star. A woman was doing laundry, and a man was riding a horse across farmland. Despite the peace, Kairi felt uneasy.

"So," Donald asked, "what did you find out?"

"My contact says that the Keyhole was purposely hidden," Lightning replied as they walked.

"Why?" Goofy asked.

"Because of that coffin," Lightning said. "Whatever was in there was so evil, it would be disastrous if it found the Keyhole. So Klauser, as well as an ancient Keyblade master, cast a spell that made it so that the Keyhole couldn't be found unless certain criteria were met."

"What criteria?" Kairi asked.

"Don't know yet," Lightning said, shaking her head. "My contact is a very mysterious figure. They came to me anonymously after the monsters started showing up, telling me they wanted to help. I don't know their name and I've never seen their face, only heard their voice. But they said they would be researching how to find the Keyhole and would get back to me."

"Well, I guess we have a little more waiting to do," Sora said.

"At least we have something to do," Donald quacked.

Kairi leaned forward as she walked. They had reached to woods, now under the shadows of the canopies and making their way down the dirt and stone trail to the decrepit house that the coffin had been buried under. "Lightning," Kairi said, "I think you should know: we found out what was being contained in that coffin."

"Oh?" Lightning said, raising an eyebrow.

"It's an ancient evil named the Horned King. Our Master, Yen Sid, fought him and locked him up a long time ago. Apparently Klauser was picked by him and the Keyblade master to guard his prison so he'd never break out. When Klauser died, the Horned King broke out and left Quiet Town."

"That's terrible," Lightning said. "No wonder those monsters like that spot. Do you know how to stop him?"

"Not yet," Sora said. "But we know what he's after, and we're going to look for it."

"Well, then," Lightning said, pulling out her sword, "let's hurry up and beat these monsters so you can be on your way."

Sora and Kairi activated Bare Necessities and Destiny's Embrace respectively, and Donald and Goofy pulled out their weapons as they approached the cabin. It looked even more run down than before; there were more cracks in the windows, and there were large, smashed holes in the porch and roof.

"How'd it get so much more damaged?" Sora asked.

"Fighting," Lightning replied, readying her weapon. "They keep coming, and they're getting stronger."

Lightning led the way inside the cabin, minding the splinters and glass. Suddenly, from out of the dark room on the left, floated an Invisible. It eyed them for a moment, then charged, swinging its sword. Lightning blocked its swing, but it did not stop charging. Sora and Goofy blocked as Kairi dove out of the way, and Donald cast a Blizzard spell. Both he and the Heartless recoiled as the Invisible was struck by icy crystals and Donald was clipped by the blade.

As if summoned, a pair of Neoshadows, a pair of Darkballs, and five Hook Bats flooded from the doorway. The Hook Bats were the first to strike, swooping down from above and swinging their hooks at the group's heads. Sora held up his Keyblade and blocked the attack, Kairi stabbed up and destroyed her attacker, and Donald, Goofy, and Lightning dodged. Lightning raised her blade to attack the Hook Bats, but was charged by a Neoshadow that knocked her back and clawed at her, cutting her leg. Lightning yelped slightly and looked down to see a thin red line on her exposed leg. A small drop of blood ran down from it. Slowly, Lightning looked up at the Heartless with an angry glare and an expression of frustration and annoyance that she had bared when she first met Sora and company.

"Now you've done it," she growled.

As the Neoshadow prepared to lunge again, Lightning suddenly vanished from its vision. It looked back and forth attempting to find her, unaware that she was standing right behind it, with her blade readied above its head. The Neoshadow never knew what hit it when Lughtning plunged the blade into the Neoshadow's head, defeating it and releasing the trapped Heart.

Goofy threw his shield at a Darkball just as Kairi leapt up and sliced another Hook Bat. The shield struck the Darkball in the face, staggering it. The shield ricocheted off of the Heartless and in Kairi's direction. She quickly raised Destiny's Embrace and hit the shield back at the Darkball, striking it again and destroying it. The shield flew back to Goofy, who caught it and gave Kairi a thumbs-up as she landed.

Sora held up Bare Necessities as two Hook Bats and a Darkball surrounded him. One of the Hook Bats was first to attack, swooping down at him. As Sora raised his Keyblade to block the Heartless, the Darkball began gnashing its sharp teeth and charging towards him, chomping. Sora reacted quickly, lunging his Keyblade at the Hook Bat and shifting it so that the Heartless' hook caught the bit. As the Darkball approached, Sora swiftly swung his Keyblade, carrying the Hook Bat with it, and ended his swing when the blade pointed at the Darkball. The Hook Bat was thrown forward, flailing as it was launched through the air and right into the smashing jaws of the Darkball. The Darkball staggered and recoiled as the Hook Bat entered its mouth and was instantly chomped to pieces. The Darkball's mouth fell open, and a freed Heart floated out. While his Keybalde was still pointed at the enemy, Sora quickly cast a series of Blizzard spells, which destroyed the Darkball.

As Kairi swung at the last Hook Bat, which eluded her, she suddenly felt a pain hit her. She looked down to see herself tackled by the other Neoshadow, its claws digging into her sides. Kairi grunted as it released her, stumbling back. She patted one of her sides to check to see if she was bleeding, and was relieved to find she was not. At that moment, the Invisible locked blades with Lightning and pushed her back, slashing at her. Kairi grunted again as she felt her and Lightning's backs hit each other. The two women glanced at each other, eyeing the other's weapons. They nodded to each other.

The Hook Bat dove from above, and Kairi leapt up and grabbed its hook. It began to flail in an attempt to shake her off, but Kairi held tight as it carried her above Lightning's head, almost to the ceiling. As soon as Kairi was above her, Lightning raised her blade and cast a Thunder spell at the Hook Bat. Kairi saw the lightning bolt flash above her and raised her Keybalde up. The lightning hit her Keyblade and split into three bolts, with Kairi redirecting the bolts into the Hook Bat, the Invisible, and the Neoshadow. The Hook Bat vanished in a puff of black smoke, and the Invisible and the Neoshadow were stunned by the electricity. Kairi fell back onto the floor, and both she and Lighting readied their blades. As soon as the electric shock wore off of the Heartless, Kairi and Lightning charged while slicing, with Kairi cleaving the Invisible and Lightning cutting the Neoshadow. Both Heartless fell and burst into black smoke.

Kairi and Lightning turned toward each other. Kairi smiled and raised her open hand. Lightning eyed it, confused for a moment, before smiling herself and high-fiving her.

"You weren't kidding," Donald said as he put away his staff.

Lightning nodded, lowering her weapon but not putting it away. "I hope you can find this Horned King guy and put him away again."

Sora smiled. "We will," he said.

Kairi nodded. "As long as we find the artifact, we should be able to stop him from doing anything too dangerous," she said. "We just need to head to the other worlds to look for it."

"Will you keep looking for the Keyhole?" Goofy asked Lightning.

"Yes," she replied. "You kids go look for the Horned King's artifact, and I'll keep searching for this world's Keyhole. If I find where it is, I'll be sure to let you know."

"Sounds good," Sora said. He gave Lightning a thumbs-up. She returned it.


	13. The Haunted Mansion

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy took off from Quiet Town and began their journey to new worlds. Sora sighed as he handled the new Gummi Ship's controls.

"Everything okay, Sora?" Donald asked.

"Yeah," Sora said. "Just a lot has happened."

"Gawrsh," Goofy remarked. "I thought you wanted a little more excitement."

"I do!" Sora clarified. "This is so much better than just visiting Twilight Town and Hollow Bastion to fight a few Heartless over and over again. There's a thrill to it. It's just… something feels different."

Kairi sat up in her seat. "How so?" she asked.

"It's this Horned King," Sora answered. "I've faced a lot of Darkness, but just seeing that coffin where he was being held… it was unlike anything I've felt before."

Kairi stirred uncomfortably. She knew what he meant. She had lost her Heart and he had faced Xehanort, and they still felt unease with the level of Darkness they were facing.

"Well, we just need to make sure he can't spread that Darkness!" Donald quacked.

"Yeah!" Goofy added. "Once we find the Black Cauldron, we'll be able to keep it safe from him. Then we'll have nothing to worry about. So cheer up, fellers, we're doin' fine!"

Sora smiled and nodded. He gazed out the window at the glimmering stars. They all glowed bright, twinkling in the colorful void. One star caught his eye. It was an off-white and glowed very brightly. As Sora admired it, it seemed to get bigger.

"Look at that star," Sora said, pointing towards it.

"It's getting bigger," Kairi examined. "Could that be the next world?"

Donald shook his head. "The ship says the next world is still a ways ahead."  
The star kept growing, its light getting brighter. Sora blinked a few times to keep the light from hurting his eyes.

"Um… Sora?" Goofy said. "It's still getting bigger."

Kairi leaned forward, then gasped. "It's not getting bigger. It's coming right for us!"

Not long after she spoke, Sora twisted the controls. The ship turned and flipped, just barely avoiding the blast of light as it skimmed the ship. It flashed before the cockpit before disappearing below them.

"What was that?" Sora called. "Where did it go?"

"I dunno!" Goofy replied. "It's not appearing on the radar!"

Then, Sora and Kairi noticed something moving out of the corners of their eyes. They glanced to the side to see a massive creature flying next to the Gummi Ship. It was off-white, with streaks of black and grey running along its length. It was humanoid… to an extent. It resembled a person shrouded in a long cloak with a hood. The chest was emblazoned with the red symbol of the Heartless. It had two black arms protruding from underneath the torn garment, each with a silver chain around the wrist. Where the face should have been was a black void and the swirling image of a purple galaxy. It was easily as big as the ship, and was staring at them as it flew alongside.

"It's a Rogue Specter!" Donald quacked loudly. "It's invisible to radar!"

"Keep your eyes on it!" Goofy hollered. "Don't let it get away!"

The Rogue Specter flew ahead, then turned and flew backwards, still facing the ship. It extended one of its clawed black hands and materialized an orb of purple energy, with a galaxy-like image similar to the one under its hood embedded within. It cocked its massive arm back.

"Evasive maneuvers!" Donald shouted.

"Hold on tight!" Sora called to the others. He twisted the controls again, turning the ship sideways as the Heartless threw its projectile, the pulsing, swirling orb just missing the ship.

"Open fire!" Sora called. Donald began firing the lasers at the Rogue Specter, and Kairi ran to another control panel and began firing pulse blasts. The Rogue Specter flinched as the first shots hit it, then materialized another orb and threw it. Sora was not as fast to dodge this time, and the orb struck one of the wings. The ship shook as there was a bright purple flash.

"How much damage did that do, Goofy?" Kairi asked, still firing.

"If it were our old ship, it would have instantly wiped out our shields," he replied. "That blast took about forty-five percent."

Donald quacked angrily and jumped into the air, shaking his fist. "We just got this thing running! I am not repairing it again!"

Kairi pointed her blaster up and fired at the Rogue Specter's hood. Her pulse blast fired off and struck it where the face should have been. Suddenly, the Heartless lurched back and clawed at its head.

"Shoot under its hood!" Kairi called.

The Rogue Specter dropped its claws, revealing that the galaxy-like image had turned into a deep, menacing red. It began flailing its arms, its chains lurching towards the ship like whips. Sora swerved to avoid them but heard a loud clank as they hit the other wing.

Donald quaked again and fired a volley of blasts at the creature's weak spot. As they hit, the Rogue Specter slammed its hands back over its head, recoiling in pain. It dropped its hands just long enough to give off an intimidating glare with its red galaxy, then swiftly turned and began flying away towards an object in the distance.

"It's headed for the next world!" Goofy said.

"Then we follow it," Sora said, hitting the thrusters to give chase. As fast as the Gummi Ship was, it was not fast enough to catch up, and the Rogue Specter flew down to the world before they had finished their approach. As they drew nearer, Sora took the time to inspect the world.

The entire world seemed to consist of one building and the surrounding land. It was a fancy, regal-looking manor made of white marble and brick. Despite its eloquent nature, it looked far from inviting. The grounds around it were overgrown with moss and vines, and dead trees dotted the dark grass. Behind the mansion was a cemetery of grey graves and stiff mausoleums. There was a foreboding and dark feel to the whole place, and not one that was enjoyably spooky like Halloween Town. This world carried an aura of menace in its shadows.

Kairi had similar thoughts, inspecting the world curiously. As menacing as it felt, there was also a feeling of sadness and longing that emanated from the manor and its grounds. It was as if the whole house was crying.

Quickly, but cautiously, Sora headed down towards the world.

* * *

Sora and Kairi activated their Keyblades shortly after landing. They stepped out of the Gummi Ship, which Sora had parked on the outskirts of the mansion's front lawn, and looked up at the intimidating structure. The nighttime sky was as black as obsidian, with only a pale moon peering from behind wispy grey clouds. It was terribly quiet, save for the cold breeze, which occasionally rattled the metal gate surrounding the property. As Sora gazed upon the house, he could have sworn he could see a flickering light, like a candle flame, pass by one of the upstairs windows.

"Gawrsh," Goofy said. "Kind of spooky, isn't it?"

Kairi gulped. "Are you sure this is the first world we have to search?"

Donald nodded. "It's the first stop in searching for the Black Cauldron."

Sora gripped Bare Necessities tighter. "Then let's do it, then."

The group walked up the mansion's stairs and up to the massive door, decorated with knockers resembling lion heads. Kairi extended her hand and grabbed the knocker, banging it down a few times. Silence followed.

"Maybe nobody's home," Goofy said.

Kairi reached out to grab the knocker again, but was startled when the door clicked and slowly creaked open.

"Hello?" Kairi said, smiling. "Hi, sorry to bother-"

She stopped when she saw that no one stood behind the door. Only the cold breeze blew through. Kairi and Sora glanced at each other, then stepped inside.

The mansion was massive and decadent. Before them was a grand staircase covered in blood-red carpet. The floors were marble tiles of white and beige, and the walls were lined with regal striped wallpaper and wooden paneling. Statues of gargoyles lined the great hall. However, the fancy house was covered in dust, cobwebs, and rust. The place seemed abandoned.

Goofy quietly shut the door behind him as he walked in, and looked around.

"Gawrsh," Goofy repeated.

Sora heard a rattling. He quickly scanned to see where it was coming from, and realized it was very close to him. He glanced down and saw Kairi's hand, clutching Destiny's Embrace, shaking.

"Kairi?" Sora asked. "You okay?"

Kairi gulped. "Sora, I don't like this."

* * *

The room was as dark as the night sky. Wisps of cloud-like fog passed through the room. From beneath the blackened floorboards, voices seemed to whisper. Floating around the circular table were various musical instruments, including a drum, a trombone, a tambourine, a bell, and a violin, all silent. Floating closer to the table were several tarot cards, each displaying a disturbingly dark image.

The individual within remained silent and motionless. She was receiving a signal. The seal had been opened. The manor had new guests. As the woman focused, she heard voices in her head.

"Kairi?" a boy's voice said. "You okay?"

"Sora, I don't like this," a girl's voice replied.

"They're here," the woman thought to herself. Her eyes opened slowly. She gazed out into the foggy darkness of her room and chanted.

"Creatures of shadow, I say now, embark! Bring forth the Heartless that dwell in the dark! Specters and phantoms, in you I believe! Confront the intruders… ensure they never leave."

There was a cracking and crashing nearby. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy whirled around to see five of the gargoyle statues come to life and brandish swords in their stony hands, transformed into Gargoyle Knight Heartless. Suddenly, all around them, five Search Ghosts faded into view. The group raised their weapons as the Heartless closed in.

The Search Ghosts all flailed their arms, smacking and clawing at Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy. Just as they all raised their weapons to block, a Gargoyle Knight swooped in and ran its sword through the center of the group. All four members called out as it struck them and pushed them apart. The Heartless turned to attack again, but Goofy jumped and brought his shield down on top of it, slamming it to the ground. He hit it repeatedly, destroying it.

Sora and Kairi stood back to back, swinging at the approaching Search Ghosts. Sora smote one, and a Gargoyle Knight charged at him. Kairi swung, but the Search Ghost disappeared before her blade could hit it. It reappeared to her side and clawed at her. Kairi raised her Keyblade to block the attack, then stabbed at the Heartless. As it staggered, Kairi stabbed her Keyblade towards the Search Ghost's wispy, thin tail and spun it, wrapping it around the blade. She then lunged forward, throwing the Search Ghost into a Gargoyle Knight, destroying the former. The Gargoyle Knight lunged at her with its blade. Kairi held Destiny's Embrace upwards and blocked it, the two blades clashing together. As the Gargoyle Knight pushed, Kairi quickly turned her Keyblade to make the Heartless slip. Taking advantage of the opening, Kairi broke the blades apart and began repeatedly striking the Gargoyle Knight until it was vanquished.

The Search Ghosts surrounded Donald and Goofy. Donald cast a Blizzard spell, hitting and stunning two of them. The others closed in on Goofy, who threw his shield at one. However, the Heartless vanished before the shield made contact, reappearing near Donald. Goofy caught his rebounding shield and bashed an unsuspecting Search Ghost, knocking it backwards. Donald quacked and began his Fantasia technique, using his staff to cast a volley of exploding, colorful fireworks around him. The Search Ghosts were caught up in and staggered by the explosions, and Goofy took the chance to charge around the area and ram them with his shield, systematically destroying each one.

Sora dodged the Gargoyle Knight's lunge, allowing the beast to fly above him. He heard it adjust itself to prepare for another lunge. Just then, another Gargoyle Knight appeared in front of him and began lunging. Sora gasped; there were attacks coming from both sides. Then he got an idea. He assumed a defensive position. Then, right before the Heartless struck, Sora dropped to the ground. The two Gargoyle Knights collided with each other above him. Sora quickly rose to his feet, whirling Bare Necessities above his head and striking both Heartless until they vanished.

The last Gargoyle Knight engaged Kairi, who quickly cast a Fire spell. Rings of flame encircled her, rapidly striking and burning the Heartless. She hit the monster away with her Keyblade, then cast a Thunder spell to finish it off with a bolt of lightning.

Sora scanned around. "Is that all of them?" he asked.

Donald pointed. "Look, one more!" he called. He motioned towards a single, last Search Ghost that had appeared. It turned away from them, and began floating down the great hall.

"After it!" Sora yelled. He charged after the Heartless, chasing it. Donald and Goofy followed, with Kairi bringing up the rear. The Search Ghost floated past the cobwebs and dust into a small chamber with red striped wallpaper and dark wooden panels. Sora leapt in and executed an air attack, destroying the Heartless. Donald, Goofy, and Kairi joined him.

"Well, if there are Heartless here, then that means we should look for the Keyhole," Donald quacked.

Goofy nodded. "Yep. First, we need to find that there Rogue Specter." He turned to head back the way that they came, then stopped. "Uh… fellers?"

Donald, Sora, and Kairi looked to see that the doorway that they had entered the chamber from had vanished. There was only wall there. Sora and Donald ran up and began knocking on it.

"Where is it?" Sora asked frantically.

Kairi's breathing quickened. She took a few steps back and looked up at the ceiling. The top of the room was shrouded in shadow, so Kairi could not see all the way up. Above them, illuminated by candlelight, were four paintings: one of an elderly woman, one of a young woman with a pink parasol, one of an older man with muttonchops, and one of a young man with a bowler hat. All of their eyes seemed to be looking down at her.

Suddenly, Sora and Donald's knocking was interrupted by a loud gust of wind that almost extinguished the candles. It started as a whisper, then seemed to resemble chuckling. Then, all four of them jumped when a disembodied voice echoed through the chamber. It was deep, almost baritone, and had a mischievous tone to it.

"When hinges creak in doorless chambers, and strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls; whenever candlelights flicker where the air is deathly still - that is the time when ghosts are present, practicing their terror with ghoulish delight! Welcome, foolish mortals, to the Haunted Mansion."

"Haunted?" Kairi's voice cracked as she spoke, almost squeaking. Sora, Donald, and Goofy raised their weapons as they all stood closer together, with Kairi pressing up against Sora.

"Who are you?" Sora demanded.

"I am your host, your... Ghost Host," the voice said. "I will be your guide through your… interesting experience here."

"Oh yeah?" Donald said, his brows low and his fist clenched. "And what if we don't want to be here?"

"Oh, please," the sinister voice chuckled. "There's no turning back now. So just try and enjoy yourselves." The voice paused, then continued. "Your tour begins here in this gallery where you see paintings of some of our guests as they appeared in their corruptible, mortal state."

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy looked up at the paintings, whose eyes still seemed to be locked onto them. However, the longer they looked, the more the paintings seemed to morph and change. Sora blinked rapidly, hoping his eyes were not playing tricks on him. They were not. The ceiling seemed to be growing higher as the paintings somehow stretched before his eyes, revealing that the man in the hat was sinking in quicksand, the older man was standing on explosives, the young woman was dangling over an alligator pit, and the old woman was sitting on a disturbing headstone with an axe embedded in the dirt next to it.

"Your cadaverous pallor betrays an aura of foreboding, almost as though you sense a disquieting metamorphosis. Is this haunted room actually stretching? Or is it your imagination, hmm?" the Ghost Host continued, sinisterly.

Kairi whimpered as she began trembling. Sora felt her shaking and grew angry. "What's the deal?" Sora shouted. "Let us out!"

The Ghost Host chuckled evilly. "That is my task for you. This chamber has no windows and no doors, which offers you this chilling challenge: to find a way out!" The disembodied voice burst out into maniacal laughter. It was short, but sinister. Then he continued. "Of course, there's always… my way!"

There was a flash, revealing windows at the top part of the ceiling where a lightning bolt was flashing by. The strobing light revealed a horrific sight: above them, hanging from the rafters, was the skeletal figure of a man with a rope around his neck. Thunder cracked from outside as Kairi screamed. Donald and Goofy hollered, and Sora gasped loudly. Kairi's Keyblade vanished as she spun around and grabbed Sora's shirt tightly, burying her head on his chest. She shut her eyes as tears began to flow from them. Sora placed his free hand on her back, holding her close, attempting to comfort her.

Before Sora could scold the ghost again, it spoke. "Oh, I didn't mean to frighten you prematurely. The real chills come later."

Sora looked around the chamber for a way out. The Ghost Host was right - there were no windows or doors aside from the ones at the top near the skeleton, and Sora did not think he could get up there. He scanned the striped wallpaper and wooden paneling for any exit that he could find. The Ghost Host had challenged them to find a way out, so there had to be an exit somewhere. Sora lifted his Keyblade and pointed it towards one of the walls, emitting the same beam he used to lock Keyholes at it. He figured that, if there was a door there, the Keyblade's light would reveal the lock. The beam simply blinked out as it touched the panel. Sora turned slightly and tried another wall.

Kairi, though frightened, opened her teary eye to see what Sora was doing. When she saw him testing the walls with his keyblade, she got the idea. Slowly, she eased her grip on Sora's shirt, which was so tight that her fingers were sore. She sniffled once, then held out her trembling arm and summoned Destiny's Embrace back. Still shaking, she pointed it at one of the other walls and tested it with her own magic.

"You okay?" Sora whispered.

Kairi inhaled deeply, then nodded slowly. "Yes. He… he just scared me is all." She gulped and then continued. "I never really told anyone about this before, but… I'm afraid of ghosts."

"You'll be okay," Sora assured as he tested another wall. "They may be a little spooky, but not all of them are bad."

Kairi glanced up at him with an expression of confusion rather than fear. "You've… met a ghost before?"

Sora smiled a bit. "There's a whole other world where its always Halloween. And the ghosts there are quite nice. There's even a little puppy-"

Before he could finish his thought, Sora's beam suddenly made one of the wooden panels on the wall glow. He, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all looked towards it as the panel shone a bright white, then vanished from sight, revealing a smaller hallway. Even from the chamber, they could hear rain hitting windows and thunder rumbling.

"Well done," the Ghost Host's voice boomed suddenly, making Sora jump. "Now, as they say, look alive, and we'll continue our little tour. And let's all stay together, please."

Goofy leaned over to Sora. "I think he just wants to scare us. If we just go through the house like he wants and find that there Rogue Specter and the Keyhole, we should be able to get through without much issue."

Sora nodded, thinking back to when he was young on Destiny Islands. He remembered how Riku would sometimes like to jump out and scare him, especially when he was in the Secret Place. It was always scary, but never hurt him. This was the same.

Sora looked over to Kairi, who had stepped back, but was still lingering close. "Hey," he said to get her attention. "Remember when Riku used to scare us back on Destiny Islands? How he'd jump out while we in the treehouse or Secret Place?"  
Kairi nodded. "He used to use the echos of the cave to make it sound like there was a ghost inside."

Sora smiled and patted her shoulder. "This is the same thing. It's just like all the other worlds we've been to, except now it has someone trying to scare us. And the more we let him, the more he'll do it. So we just need to push through and find the Keyhole, make sure the Black Cauldron isn't here, and then we never have to come back."

Kairi took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. She looked down the hallway, then began walking. Sora followed close behind her, waving Donald and Goofy along.

The hallway was lined with windows, each showing little more than the black sky and dead fields. Rain was pattering down on the glass, and the occasional lightning bolt flashed and thunder crackled. The hall was lit with hanging candle lanterns, and was carpeted with a soft red and brown rug that ran down its entire length. Sora noticed more paintings on the wall, including one of a well-dressed man. However, when the lightning flashed, it seemed to change before him to resemble the skeleton hanging in the other room. Sora thought it best not to call attention to it.

As the group wandered down the hall, they saw two marble busts at the end, whose vacant eyes seemed to follow them. As they turned the corner, Kairi and Sora froze. In front of them was a giant mess of spider webs that had been spun from wall to wall, ceiling to floor. Sora raised Bare Necessities and started cutting through.

As his Keyblade brought down the dusty, silken threads, he suddenly heard a sound. He peered up to see a large, black, spider-like creature with a red Heartless emblem on its rear. It stared at him with eight red eyes. It spread a pair of large dark mandibles and hissed like a snake.

"Look out!' Sora exclaimed. "Silk Spinner!"

Kairi jumped out of the way as the Heartless fell to the floor, turning in midair to land on its eight shadowy legs. A pair of Search Ghosts materialized next to it. The Silk Spinner jumped at Sora; he held his Keyblade to block, but the Heartless tackled him to the ground. Sora felt his back hit the rug as the spider-like creature snapped its mandibles near his face. Sora pressed against his Keyblade to keep the foe away.

"Sora!" Kairi exclaimed. She started running to help him, but one of the Search Ghosts stopped her. It swung its arm, smacking her back. Kairi quickly recovered and hit it a few times with her blade before it vanished. Kairi held still and waited. When she heard it appear behind her, she stabbed backwards and impaled the Heartless, destroying it.

Sora threw the Silk Spinner off of him, allowing it to slam into the wall. It jumped back to its feet and hissed again, and began spitting green acid towards him. As the sludge flew through the air, Goofy jumped in and blocked it with his shield. Donald ran up and began hitting the Heartless with his staff, and Sora took the opportunity to run up and begin rapidly striking it with his Keyblade. The Silk Spinner hissed again and scurried up the wall, spitting acid. Donald quickly cast a Gravity spell which enveloped the monster and pulled it back to the ground, where Sora finished it off with a Blizzard spell.

The other Search Ghost began to flee, phasing through the webs. Sora and Kairi both threw their Keyblades at the Heartless, slicing through all of the webs and both striking the Search Ghost, defeating it while simultaneously clearing the path.

As Sora and the others continued down the hall, he heard the Ghost Host chuckle. "Adventurous, aren't you?" he said.

Sora scoffed, but decided to to try to find out more information. "How many ghosts are here?" he asked.

The Ghost Host chortled. "There are several prominent ghosts who have retired here from creepy old crypts from all over. Actually, we have nine hundred and ninety-nine happy haunts here, but there's room for a thousand. Any volunteers?"

"Is there something here called a Black Cauldron?" Sora asked, ignoring the threat.

The Ghost Host surprisingly paused for a moment before replying. "There may be, and there may not. The answers are for you to discover."

Sora shook his head. This trickster's mischief, though admittedly scary, seemed more like twisted games than actual threat, though there certainly still was the chance for that. He reminded Sora of the Cheshire Cat back in Wonderland, which was not exactly a good thing.

As they kept walking, they soon came across a set of stairs with black railings. The group ascended the staircase into another hallway, this one lined completely with purple and black wallpaper. There were dark brown doors on either side of the hall, as well as two suits of armor, each clutching halberds. As the group approached, the armors suddenly lowered their weapons towards them. Sora and Kairi instinctively blocked, then pushed the halberds away and swung at the armors. Both fell apart upon contact, clanging to the ground, empty.

As if awakened by the noise, knocking came from behind one of the doors. Then, heavy breathing from behind another. One's knob began rattling, and another had faint screams coming from behind it. Sora and Kairi winced from the noise and hurried forward to escape the ruckus.

As they ran, they heard the Ghost Host's voice again. "The Happy Haunts have received your sympathetic vibrations, and are beginning to materialize. They're assembling for a swinging wake. And they'll be expecting me. I'll see you all a little later." After he spoke, Sora and Kairi felt a weight lift from the air, as if an unseen presence had left them.

"He's nuts," Donald scowled.

"He's mean," Kairi said, still shaken.

"He's weird," Sora added.

"He's… odd…" a raspy, cackling voice said.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all froze. They looked behind them, and saw a figure. He was a cloaked man with a twisted, grinning face. A hatbox hung from his hand, and in his other hand he clutched a cane. A tall top hat sat on his head. Most importantly, everyone could see right through him. Kairi yelped and jumped back. Donald and Sora raised their weapons.

The man's skeletal grin grew wider. "Did I scare you?" he cackled.

Sora's brow furrowed. "Who are you?" he asked sternly.

"Who I am is of little importance," the spectral being said. "What is important is who you are."

"Stop speaking in riddles!" Donald demanded.

The Hatbox Ghost smiled again. Suddenly, without warning, his head vanished. His hat still floated where it should have been, but there was nothing below it but a void. Sora gasped, and Kairi cowered behind him.

"Forgive me," the Hatbox Ghost's voice continued. "I'm afraid this is a part of my nature."

Sora glanced down at the hatbox, and took a step back when he saw the ghost's head inside, peering at him, still with his toothy grin.

"You oppose those monsters running amok, am I correct?" the head asked.

Sora nodded.

"And you are searching for a way to stop them, no?"

Sora nodded again.

"Well then," the Hatbox Ghost said, his head suddenly vanishing from the Hatbox and back onto his neck, "perhaps I can help you out."

Goofy stepped forward. "How?" he asked.

The Hatbox Ghost chuckled. "Normally, we wouldn't be opposed to some creepy creatures here. But my philosophy is this: if you're going to be a ghost, you have fun with it. You… embrace your nature. You scare people. That's what we like to do here."

"Like the Ghost Host?" Kairi said, still trembling.

"Indeed…" the Hatbox Ghost said, his head suddenly vanishing again and reappearing in the hatbox. "But there are some ghosts here that are full of hate… full of Darkness. And one of them has communed with a world beyond ours to bring these monsters here."

"And who is that?" Sora asked, his Keyblade still raised and still skeptical of the ghostly figure before him.

"Our resident clairvoyant," the Hatbox Ghost replied, his head returning. "Madame Leota. She has reached out into the Darkness, and not to give visitors like you a good scare. If you wish to stop the monsters, you must stop her first."

"And what reason do we have to trust you?" Donald asked.

The Hatbox Ghost lowered his head, making his thin, skeletal face appear even more menacing under the rim of his hat. "You don't," he said. "But here, it's the best lead you get. Go to the graveyard, just past the ballroom. And prepare yourself… for whatever lies there." He cackled. Then with the disembodied sound of a heartbeat, he vanished into thin air.

Sora lowered his Keyblade and huffed. He glanced at the others. "Well?" he asked. "Do we go to the graveyard?"

Goofy placed his finger on his temple. "He sounded like he wanted to help us. And like he said, it's the best lead we have."

Donald stomped his foot and shook his fist. "Of course we're not going to the graveyard! That spook is trying to trick us!"

Kairi whimpered and hunkered down.

Goofy shrugged. "It's the best chance we've got. And whatever's there we should be able to handle."

Donald shook his head. "No! We can't trust anyone here!"

Sora was getting frustrated. "Look, guys, we'd have to search this whole place for the Keyhole anyway…"

As Sora, Donald, and Goofy argued, Sora thought he heard a sad sound. Donald and Goofy heard it too, and all of them turned to look.

Next to one of the walls was a large grandfather clock, decorated with spiky carvings that resembled a face. Sitting with her legs curled up next to the clock was Kairi, as far into the corner of the wall and the clock as she could go. Her arms were wrapped around her legs, and she was crying softly.

Sora exhaled slowly, letting the tension he was feeling lessen. He deactivated his Keyblade and walked over to his friend. He knelt down next to her.

"What's wrong, Kairi?" he asked as sincerely as he could.

"Oh, Sora," Kairi replied between tears. "I'm just so scared."

Sora turned in place and sat down next to her, putting his arm around her shoulders. "you're okay," he said softly. "You're safe. Nothing's gonna hurt you."

"Of all things," Kairi whimpered, "why did it have to be ghosts?"

Sora thought what he could say to make her feel better. He could only encourage her so much, and she was clearly terrified.

"Do you…" Sora said, pausing in the middle of his statement, "…want to go wait in the ship?"

Kairi considered the offer. She would feel safe there, but she would also feel useless. When she saw the world from the Gummi Ship, she had felt uneasy, but something about her unease was both pulling her forward and stopping her in her tracks. From the dark hallways, she thought she heard disembodied singing. Slow, sad singing, as if someone needed help.

Kairi sniffled and reached up, wiping away her tears. "No," she said. "Just… stick close to me, please?"

Sora nodded. "Of course."

Kairi inhaled the dusty air, then slowly exhaled, calming herself down. Slowly she stood back up, with Sora doing the same. As Sora began to walk forward, Kairi grabbed his hand and held it. Sora gave her a reassuring smile and walked ahead, with Kairi following behind still holding his hand. Every moment, she thought she saw eyes staring at her from the walls. However, she kept moving her attention to Sora's safe presence; she was still afraid, but knew she was safe as long as she stuck with her friends. She still did not know what kept her going.

The hall ended in a large doorway. Its door was open wide, and strange light poured in from the other room. As they approached, the group thought they heard music. It was upbeat music, but was eerily distorted. Cautiously, they entered the room.

The room was massive. The walls were lined with golden wallpaper, red curtains, and wooden arches. A crystal chandelier hung from the high ceiling. On one end of the room was a dusty fireplace with what appeared to be green flame within. On the other end was a large pipe organ, and in the center of the room was a long table and set of chairs. However, the most noticeable feature was that it was completely filled with ghosts.

There were ghosts in every seat at the table, smiling and laughing. A skeletal figure sat at the organ, playing the distorted tune. From out of the pipes came skull-shaped apparitions with each note. The open parts of the room were filled with couples, dancing in their elegant clothes. Two ghosts appeared to be arguing, and one in a top hat was hanging from the chandelier, laughing.

Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi all activated and raised their weapons as they saw the sight, and each felt a chill when many of the ghosts turned to look at them. There was a pause of uncomfortable silence.

Suddenly, the ghost on the chandelier grinned happily. "Guests!" he cheered. To Sora and Kairi's surprise, the other ghosts cheered and laughed too, and most resumed the actions they had been taking.

The ghost from the chandelier vanished, and suddenly reappeared in front of the group. His attitude and appearance were completely different from the disturbing environment before; he was plump, and had a jolly smile. He was still transparent, but carried a feeling of affability.

"Welcome!" he cheered. "Erasmus Cromwell Pickwick, pleased to make your acquaintance!"

Goofy chuckled. "Finally, a friendly face!"

Pickwick chuckled as well. "I'll take it you've met the Ghost Host. Tricky, that one."

Sora and Donald lowered their weapons. Kairi did as well, but stayed close to Sora.

"You guys having a party?" Sora asked, still cautious.

"Indeed!" Pickwick chortled. "We celebrate every day! We dance and feast and play! We scare some people, then we celebrate some more!"

Sora smiled at the man's charm and charisma. He deactivated Bare Necessities.

"I'm Sora," he said. "These are my friends Donald, Goofy, and Kairi."

Pickwick bowed slightly. When he saw Kairi, he removed his top hat, revealing a bald head. "Pleasure meeting you, ma'am." He extended his hand upwards.

Kairi hesitated, but slowly reached out her hand. She felt his soft grip around her fingers, which was odd because occasionally his hand seemed to vanish. He leaned down and gently kissed her hand.

Kairi pulled her hand back slowly afterwards, standing still, but noticeably more relaxed than she had been. She smiled slightly and nodded her thanks.

Donald walked up to the ghost. "Hey, do you know where the graveyard is?" he asked.

Pickwick nodded. He turned and pointed to a black door underneath some windows. "That door will lead you to the balcony. The Graveyard is right next to it."

Sora was pleased to finally be getting some help. He thought about the Hatbox Ghost, but was not sure if he trusted him. This joviality was a welcome change.

Suddenly, Sora heard the organ music stop and what sounded like just banging on the keys. Pickwick noticed it too and slammed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. They looked towards the organ and saw that a Neoshadow had materialized on the keys. The organ player was taken aback so much that he vanished. As the music halted, a pair of Silk Spinners descended from above, and a pair of Search Ghosts appeared next to the table. The dancers and table guests gasped at the monsters and disappeared.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy activated their weapons as Pickwick vanished as well. Donald was the first to run into battle, shooting Blizzard spells at the Silk Spinners. Goofy got to work fighting one of the Search Ghosts, Sora charged the Neoshadow, and Kairi took on the other Search Ghost.

Kairi leapt into the air and battered the Heartless around, attempting to hit it out of the air. It dodged the last of her swings and flailed its arms, hitting her down. She landed on her rear with a grunt, then rolled out of the way when the Search Ghost slammed its hands down towards her.

Goofy charged at the other Search Ghost, attempting to ram it with his shield. However, the Heartless vanished before he could reach it, and it reappeared behind him. Before it could attack, Goofy threw his shield to hit it. The shield traveled so far that it hit one of the Silk Spinners Donald was fighting, and then came back and destroyed the Search Ghost.

Donald cast Thunder at one of the Silk Spinners, shocking it. The other one spat acid at him and it hit, causing Donald to flail and quack in in pain. The Silk Spinner charged and slammed into him, knocking him to the floor. Donald attempted another spell, but the fist Silk Spinner grabbed him and began wrapping him in webbing as he flailed.

Kairi noticed Donald in trouble. Quickly, she avoided the Search Ghost's next attack and broke off her fight with it, running to Donald. She cast a Blizzard spell at the one wrapping Donald in webbing, stunning it. However, the second one dropped down on top of her, knocking her to the ground and beginning webbing her arms to her body. Kairi struggled, but the silk was sticky and firm. She kicked and flexed her wrist, trying to hit the Heartless with her Keyblade or at least line up a spell, but the Silk spinner wrapped up her legs and hissed.

Sora dodged the Neoshadow's attack. He took advantage of the missed swing and attacked, hitting the monster rapidly. The Neoshadow retaliated, clawing at him. Sora felt the claws sting as they scratched him. Sora then rammed forward with his Keyblade, slamming the Heartless onto the pipe organ's keyboard, unleashing a volley of distorted notes. He then noticed the skull-like apparitions come out the top, and he got an idea. Quickly reacting to the Heartless pushing back, Sora stepped back to let his foe lose its balance, then hit it into the air, so high it flew over the organ's pipes. Sora quickly dashed over to the keyboard, deactivated his Keyblade, cracked his knuckles, and began disorderly hitting the keys. Irritable, distorted notes rang out loudly, echoing in the ballroom. As he played, the skulls flew out of the organ and struck the Neoshadow, still suspended in midair. With each projectile that hit it, it was launched back up, continually taking damage until it vanished in a puff of black smoke.

Sora reactivated Bare Necessities and turned around. He saw Goofy fending off a Search Ghost, but the Silk Spinners had captured Donald and Kairi in webbing. The two were struggling as they attempted to free their arms and legs. Goofy managed to destroy the Search Ghost, but as he did, about a dozen more materialized around the perimeter of the room and began closing in.

Sora pointed his Keyblade, not sure whether to use magic or physical attack. He had to help Kairi and Donald, but Goofy was about to be overwhelmed. And if he rushed in, he would be overwhelmed as well.

Unless…

Sora deactivated Bare Necessities and reached into his pocket. He pulled out the Summon Gem with the image of the electronic device that he had gotten from Mabel in Gravity Falls. He pressed the gem to his chest.

"Courage!" he exclaimed.

The haunted ballroom vanished. The environment around him now appeared to resemble blue static, with green lines, almost like wireframe, detailing it all. It all glowed and moved, giving off a very high-tech feel. Then Sora heard four rhythmic beeps and a small blast. He turned around to see his ally. In her hand was a gun-like mechanism with a rope and grapple extended off of it. She was swinging through the air towards him. The four notes played again as she landed and retracted her grapple gun. She did a front flip as she landed, and kept doing flips towards him.

His ally stopped in front of him with a sly smile. She was a teenage girl about his height, with long red hair and large green eyes. She was wearing black boots, pale green jeans with several pockets, a brown utility belt, grey gloves, and a short black top that exposed her midriff. She gave a thumbs-up as she stopped.

"So," she said. "What's the sitch?"

Sora grinned. Now that he had met his ally, he learned her name: Kim Possible.

Sora extended his hand, and Kim high-fived it. As they did, the technological environment faded away and the two returned to the ballroom. Goofy was doing his best to hold off a Search Ghost, and Kairi managed to free one of her hands and use her Keyblade to swat the Silk Spinners away.

"We need to help them," Sora explained to Kim. "Can you go help Goofy while I go save Donald and Kairi?"

Kim gave another thumbs-up. "You bet. I can do anything," she said. With that, she leapt towards Goofy, flipping across the ballroom. she jumped over the table, and kicked one of the Search Ghosts out of the air.

Sora ran up, reactivated Bare Necessities, and sliced at the Silk Spinners. They hissed and spat acid at him, which he dodged. He kept swinging, cutting one and forcing another to back off. As his blade traveled through the air, it sliced open Donald and Kairi's web prisons, freeing them. Kairi quickly cast a Cure spell on Donald, then rushed in and stabbed one of the Silk Spinners in the head, defeating it. Donald rushed up and hit the other Heartless with his staff, distracting it for Sora to jump from above and stab through the monster, destroying it.

"Thank you!" Donald quacked.

"No problem," Sora replied. "Let's help Goofy!"

Goofy threw his shield again, but the Search Ghost phased away and vanished before it hit. Kim had his back, using martial arts to kick and chop at the Heartless. Even when she missed one, she flipped back to the ground and attacked another, never stopping and keeping the Heartless away from Goofy.

Sora, Donald, and Kairi rushed in, each swinging at the monsters with their respective weapons. They fought their way towards their allies, even destroying a few Heartless in the process. Sora dodged an attack, and rolled over to where Kim was fighting. As they stood together, all of the Search Ghosts materialized around them and began to close in.

"We're surrounded!" Kairi exclaimed.

Sora and Kim glanced at each other and got an idea. Sora raised his Keyblade vertically, and Kim pulled out her grapple gun and hooked onto the weapon. Then, she fired the grapple at the same time Sora swung his Keyblade in a circle.

"Everybody duck!" Sora called.

Kairi, Donald, and Goofy obeyed, dropping to the ground. Sora swung his Keyblade around over his head, with Kim latched on at the end of her grapple. Her feet left the ground and she was swung through the air, striking all of the Heartless as Sora spun her around several times. She kicked and struck each Search Ghost as she passed over, while also careful to maintain her grip on her grapple gun so she was not flung. After all of the Search Ghosts had been staggered and weakened, Sora stopped swinging. Kim retracted her grapple gun and somersaulted down to the ground. Sora then raised his Keyblade back up into the air and cast a Thunder spell, sending a bolt of lightning down that struck the Keyblade and arced off, hitting and simultaneously destroying all of the Heartless.

Sora smiled at Kim. "Thanks. I owe you one."

Kim smiled back. "No problem. Just beep me if you wanna reach me," she said. Then she vanished in a brilliant display of colored light.

As Sora lowered his weapon and took a breath, the ghosts began to rematerialize. They looked around briefly, then soon went back to their dances and parties as if nothing had ever happened. Pickwick appeared before them.

"Thank you," he said. "That Madame Leota has been summoning those creatures here. They're making a mess out of everything."

Goofy put away his shield. "That's what we're here to stop," he said.

Pickwick tipped his hat to them. "I wish you luck. May you find what you're looking for."

To Sora's surprise, Kairi stepped forward. "Thank you, Pickwick," she said with a slight tremble. Pickwick just smiled, then faded away.

Sora walked next to Kairi, grinning. "See?" he said. "I told you not all ghosts are bad."

Kairi chuckled nervously, then led the way out the door to the graveyard.

The graveyard was large, larger than the ballroom. It was a massive plot of land surrounded by iron fence, and dotted all over with gravestones, mausoleums, dead oak trees, and swinging lanterns. An eerie mist was settled over everything, and ghostly faces and voices seemed to carry with the fog. As they stepped off of the marble balcony and onto the dirty ground, Sora noted that the trees all looked like they were reaching for him. Donald had not put away his staff from the last battle, and raised it in anticipation. Kairi was scanning the area worriedly, hoping that the frightening landscape was not housing a threat. As she walked over the damp dirt, she felt something under her foot. She looked down to see a glimmer in the mud. She reached down and dug the object out, wiping her fingers on her dress as she held up the object.

It was a ring. Not just any ring, but a wedding ring. It looked to be made from solid gold, and had a brilliant diamond nestled on the top. The gold was engraved with swirling designs resembling leaves. Kairi also noticed something engraved on the inside. She held it up to her eye, closed the other, and looked through the hole. Though it was muddied, she thought she read the name "Emily" engraved on the inside. As her vision focused, she noticed Sora was standing nearby, his head almost perfectly framed by the circle of the ring. In the damp fog, his hair seemed to become reflective and his eyes seemed to shine. Kairi felt warm for a moment before sheepishly opening her eye and placing the ring in her pocket.

"Kairi?' she heard Goofy ask.

Kairi spun around to address her friend. "Yes?" she asked.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, why?" she asked back.

"Your face is red," he said. Kairi had not realized her blush and tried to cover it up.

Donald looked at some of the tombstones. "So, what were we supposed to find here?" he asked.

"I'm not sure…" Sora said, placing his fingers on his chin.

Then Kairi noticed another glimmer, this time from the foggy night sky. She looked up and saw it getting brighter and closer. She recognized what it was.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" she called. "Look out!"

Her warning came just in time, as her friends dove out of the way just before the threat impacted the ground, sending a tremor that almost knocked Kairi off of her feet. Sora and Goofy activated their weapons as they got up. Donald jumped to his feet, quacking angrily.

From out of the dirt rose the Rogue Specter, its chains rattling loudly and its spiraling, galaxy-like face a shade of deep purple. It rose high over a dead oak tree and landed on top of a mausoleum. It formed two orbs of energy, one in each hand, each with the same galaxy-like image as under its distorted hood.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all gathered together, weapons ready, as bats and crows fluttered around the graveyard.

The Rogue Specter threw an orb at them. They group dodged out of the way as the energy ball struck the dirt and exploded with a loud bang, leaving a black mark on the ground. The Heartless threw the other one at Goofy who hit it with his shield. The orb travelled back to the Rogue Specter and struck it, knocking it off of its perch. It got back up in seconds, floating above the ground. It charged at Goofy and swung at him with its claws, knocking him into an open grave. Goofy hollered as he fell down the hole and landed with a grunt before getting onto his feet and attempting to climb out.

Quickly, Donald jumped in front of the Heartless and cast a Blizzard spell at the Rogue Specter's head. The crystals hit and the monster recoiled, its galaxy turning deep red. It swung one of its chains like a rope, wrapping around Donald and pinning his wings to his body. The Heartless then whipped its chain through the air, making Donald fly through the fog and collide with a tree.

The Rogue Specter turned its attention to Sora and Kairi. It raised its arm and clawed at them. They managed to jump out of the way, and the monster's claws sunk deep into the dirt. It attempted to pull back, but was stuck. Sora took the opportunity to jump onto the back of the Heartless' hand and run up its arm until he was close enough to hit the head with his Keyblade. Sora swung Bare Necessities rapidly, striking the Rogue Specter's weak point over and over again. The Heartless flailed and freed itself, floating back and grabbing Sora in its hand. It squeezed, digging its claws into him. Sora yelled as he struggled, but the Heartless just threw him to the ground. Sora struck a headstone as he hit, crying out in pain as he collided with the stone. The tombstone toppled, and Sora gritted his teeth as he felt a stinging pain in his ribcage. He grunted as he stared to get up.

"Sora!" Kairi yelled. She raised Destiny's Embrace. "Hea-"

Her Cure spell was suddenly cut off by the Rogue Specter, which wrapped a chain around her and quickly flew to another mausoleum, dragging Kairi painfully on the ground behind it. The chain unraveled and Kairi skidded to a stop. She gritted her teeth and noted a cut on her arm and a pair of sizable red marks on her knee and cheek, but was otherwise okay as she got back up.

Sora, as he reached his feet, felt disoriented and dizzy. His head, as well as most of his body and especially his ribs, all hurt. He attempted to cast a Cure spell, but his magic energy was still depleted from summoning Kim Possible earlier. He pulled out an Ether and threw it into the air. The Ether vanished in a flurry of blue light and bubbles, and Sora cast the Cure spell. He almost immediately felt the pain diminish. He looked and saw Donald recover, as well as Goofy climb out of the grave. Sora readied his Keyblade as he headed in the direction of the Heartless.

The Rogue Specter, perched on top of another mausoleum, formed two more orbs in its claws. However, this time it smashed the two together, creating a much larger orb with a red galaxy design swirling within. It raised the orb above its head with both of its hands and threw it at Kairi. She knew that, even if she blocked, it was still going to hit her hard and hurt, but she had no other choice. She raised her Keyblade and blocked. Sora sprinted towards her, and just before the orb made contact, he thrust his Keyblade next to hers. The orb reflected off of the two Keyblades and back at the Rogue Specter, colliding with it with a loud explosion. The Heartless fell to the ground, and took longer to get back up.

Kairi nodded to Sora to quickly thank him, then rushed the enemy. Just before the Heartless got back up, Kairi grabbed onto its cloak and held tight. The rogue Specter rose back into the air and started whipping its chains at Sora, who dodged them. A bolt of lightning and a flying shield suddenly struck the Rogue Specter almost simultaneously in the head, causing it to recoil. It turned its attention to Donald and Goofy and whipped its chains at them, but Goofy blocked and Donald dodged. While the Heartless' back was turned, Sora held Bare Necessities horizontally and charged. He leapt into the air and rammed his Keybalde into the Rogue Specter's back, staggering it. Kairi gripped tightly onto the otherworldly garment and slowly and carefully climbed up towards the hood.

The Rogue Specter turned, materializing an orb in its claw, and threw it at Sora, knocking him back. Kairi clung to the hood now, and swung Destiny's Embrace so it struck the Heartless' weak spot. The monster threw its head up, and Kairi used the momentum to allow herself to be flung into the air. She felt the damp fog against her skin as she travelled high over the graveyard, pointing her Keyblade down. Bats and crows suddenly fluttered from places unknown and flew around her as she dropped, stabbing her Keyblade into the Rogue Specter's head. The galaxy-like design suddenly flashed and turned a blinding white. The glow enveloped the entire Heartless as it extended its arms dramatically. Then, the whole creature went dark, and vanished in a blast of black smoke. A freed Heart floated into the air and disappeared.

Kairi landed back on the ground, somersaulting to ease her landing. However, as soon as she landed and stood up, she toppled back and landed on her rear, panting. Sora wiped sweat from his forehead and sat down on a stone bench, breathing heavily.

"Good going," he said to Kairi in between breaths.

"Thanks for helping me," she replied, rubbing her sore cheek.

Donald and Goofy walked up, and Donald cast a Cure spell on Kairi to patch up her wounds. Goofy put away his shield, then looked back over the graveyard.

"Well, at least that Rogue Specter's gone," Donald said.

"Hey, fellers," Goofy said, calling everyone to him. "Lookie here!"

Sora groaned as he stood up, and Kairi and Donald followed. On the ground, roughly where the Rogue Specter had landed, was the glowing outline of a Keyhole. Sora raised his Keyblade and pointed it at the mark.

Donald and Goofy stared at the Keyhole, waiting for Sora's magic to lock it. However, it did not happen.

"Sora?" Donald quacked.

"What's up?" Goofy asked. The two turned around. To their surprise, Sora and Kairi were nowhere in sight. Only fog now occupied the places where they had been.

"Sora?" Donald asked.

"Kairi?" Goofy questioned.

* * *

Sora and Kairi were not sure what had happened. One moment, they were in the graveyard about to lock the Keyhole. Then, there was a sensation. The best way it could be described was as a flash of darkness. Everything pulsed black for a moment, and now they were somewhere else.

It was difficult to see where they were; it was so dark. However, with their limited vision, they could each make out dark red curtains on black walls, a dark oak wardrobe, a few bookshelves with various books, skulls, and other various decorations on them, and a black table on top of a purple rug. There were musical instruments scattered around the edges of the round room, and cards with disturbing images on them lying on the table. The only source of light emanated from a crystal ball in the center of the table, which glowed an eerie blue color.

"Sora?" Kairi called.

"I'm here," Sora said, his eyes adjusting to the dark. He could soon see the outline of Kairi standing nearby.

"What happened?' Kairi asked. "Where are we?"

"I don't know…" Sora said, looking around the room.

From the silence, a noice started to emit. It was an unsettling, whispering sound that was coming from the table. Sora and Kairi turned and walked towards it, and looked into the crystal ball.

Inside was a flurry of blue vapors and mists, swirling around like a hurricane. From the void of wind, a face suddenly appeared, the wisps becoming the hair on her head. Sora and Kairi yelped and took a step back. The face was that of an older woman, attractive in her own right, but with an unsettling glare and a low frown.

Sora gripped Bare Necessities as Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace. "I'm going to guess," Sora said, "that you're Madame Leota?"

The air grew cold as the head in the crystal ball spoke. "I am the voice of the spirits, seer of all. The clairvoyant mystic within crystal ball."

Sora instantly picked up that she was speaking, or rather incanting, in rhyme. "So you're the one summoning the Heartless here. Where is the Black Cauldron?" he asked sternly.

Madame Leota's stare grew colder. "You shall not interrupt the Master's dark work. Soon, in all worlds, Darkness will lurk. Once each member of evil does their respective parts, all will be consumed by those without Hearts."

Kairi raised Destiny's Embrace. "The Master? So you're working with the Horned King. And no. We'll stop the Darkness. We'll stop the Horned King. We'll stop you!"

The air in the dark room began to move. Suddenly, before their eyes, Madame Leota's crystal ball began to float up into the air, above their heads.

"You fools will now feel my power unfurled!" Madame Leota yelled. "Your keys will never lock the Heart of this world!"

The air turned to wind, as if it was circulating around the table. The cards blew off and were caught up in the gust, and the musical instruments started to rattle. Leota rose higher and began to chant.

"Serpents, and spiders, tail of a rat… Call in the spirits, wherever they're at! Rap on a table, it's time to respond… send us a message from somewhere beyond!"

As she finished, the musical instruments rose into the air and began whirling around the room. They were high enough that Sora and Kairi did not have to duck, but they braced themselves against the wind. Three Search Ghosts materialized in the room, and all began floating towards Sora and Kairi.

Kairi acted first, casting a Thunder spell to stun one of the oncoming Heartless. Sora jumped up and began hitting at another, knocking it back.

Madame Leota shot her glare down to them and chanted again. "Pond toads, and lizards, piddle and strum! Answer the role by beating a drum!"

Suddenly, the large snare drum that was circling above floated quickly down towards them. It bashed into Sora, hitting him back to the ground, then swooped in behind Kairi. Floating drumsticks hit her repeatedly before the drum hit her on the head and floated back upwards. Kairi rubbed the back of her head as a Search Ghost closed in and hit her, making her stumble backwards. Sora got back on his feet just in time to block a Search Ghost's attack.

Leota cackled evilly and recited her incantations again. "Goblins and ghoulies from last Halloween… awaken the spirits with your tambourine!"

A tambourine swooped down, spinning in the air like a saw blade. Sora ducked and swung at the same time, bringing the Heartless he was fighting into the path of the instrument, which struck it and destroyed it. The tambourine kept spinning towards Kairi, who heard the chimes and swung at it, breaking the instrument into splinters before it could hit her.

She then whirled around and stabbed the Search Ghost, defeating it. As the last Search Ghost closed in, a Silk Spinner crawled from underneath the table and hissed.

"Creepies and crawlies, toads in a pond!" Leota chanted, "Let there be music from regions beyond!"

The violin then swooped down, playing screeching, painful notes on its strings. Both Sora and Kairi gritted their teeth at the loud squealing, giving the Search Ghost a chance to smack Sora and the Silk Spinner a chance to spit acid onto Kairi. Kairi yelped as she shook the burning liquid off, though it left red marks on her skin. Sora lunged at the Search Ghost and cast a Fire spell, though the Heartless avoided it by dematerializing.

"Harpies and Furies, old friends and new… blow on a horn so we all know that it's you!"

The trombone floated down, blasting loudly. There seemed to be shockwaves of distorted sound visibly emanating from the horn. Kairi swatted the instrument away from her, and Sora quickly leapt up and punched with his free hand. His fist slammed into the horn, blocking the sound. The shockwaves stung his fist, but shook the trombone so badly that it fell apart.

As Sora landed, he heard the Search Ghost appear behind him. He quickly spun around and hit it, sending it flying across the room. Kairi, meanwhile, struck the Silk Spinner several times. When the Search Ghost came flying between her and her foe, Kairi quickly stabbed and impaled both Heartless on her blade, destroying both.

Madame Leota gasped loudly, almost yelling. Then her crystal ball floated down towards them. It flew into Kairi, hitting her back, but Sora jumped up and struck the crystal ball with his Keyblade. Madame Leota yelled, both in pain and anger, before floating back up into the air with a visible crack in her ball.

The drum swooped back down, but Kairi jumped into its path and cast a Fire spell. The wooden drum immediately ignited, and soon burned into nothing but ash. The wind seemed to pick up after Kairi did this, growing faster and colder. Sora even noticed Kairi shiver.

"Wizards and witches, wherever you dwell… give us a hint... by ringing a bell!"

A bronze bell flew down, ringing loudly and emitting the same shockwaves that the trombone did. It swing at Sora like a sword, and he blocked it with his Keyblade. The bell clanked as it swung down, and Sora again blocked it. Kairi ran up from behind and hit it from above, slamming it onto the ground and crushing it against the floor.

The violin then swooped down, screeching annoyingly. Kairi covered her ears, but Sora bared through the pain and swatted the instrument a few times with his blade, smashing it and stopping the awful racket.

Madame Leota snarled as she descended down again. "Enjoy your last breaths in this darkened room! For this is the moment you will meet your doom! The powers of Darkness will now encompass you, for now I will make ghosts of you two!"

The wind picked up even more, so cold that Sora began to tremble, and so intense that he had trouble staying on his feet. Kairi held up her arm to keep the stinging gusts out of her eyes. Madame Leota floated in between them, when suddenly lightning arced from her ball. It struck both Sora and Kairi, hitting them both into walls behind them. Sora struck a bookcase, causing a few tomes to fall on his head.

Leota cackled as she turned her attention to Sora. Her ball began pulsing the musical shockwaves at him, making his skin crawl painfully. Kairi regained her balance and, fighting against the wind, pressed forward until she was close to Leota. She raised Destiny's Embrace and hit the ball, cracking the crystal again. Madame Leota cried out again before floating back out of reach.

"Heartless of Darkness, creatures of fright, I summon you now… to dance through the night!" she called, summoning another pair of Search Ghosts. Sora noticed that, after Kairi had struck, the wind grew ever-so-slightly weaker. At the very least, he could keep his balance now. As the Heartless closed in, Sora quickly cast a Gravity spell, dragging the two Search Ghosts to the ground. He and Kairi lunged at the same time, striking the Heartless over and over until they vanished.

Madame Leota raged, and rose even higher above their heads, until she was far above them. She sneered, then yelled out, "You brats shall now witness and succumb to true fear! I will make you spirits, forever trapped here!"

The wind suddenly grew so fast that both Sora and Kairi were swept off of their feet. They spun around the table, whirling around and around in the icy gusts. Sora did his best to keep his eye on the table to try and not get sick. He glance up at Madame Leota, high above the ground, and got an idea. He tried to raise his Keyblade, but the wind was pushing his arm back down. Struggling against the immense force, Sora finally raised his Keyblade and yelled.

"Force!"

A black-purple orb encompassed Madame Leota and erupted. The powerful Gravity spell dragged the crystal ball quickly towards the floor. Leota gasped loudly before screaming in fury. Her crystal ball slammed onto the black floorboards. With an ear-splitting shatter, her screaming was cut off. There was a bright flash of light blue light that filled the room, momentarily blinding Sora and Kairi. As the light dissipated, as did the wind, as Sora and Kairi floated back tot he ground. The air returned to its normal chill, and became deathly still. The tarot cards floated to the ground, and the room was dark.

As Sora panted, there was suddenly another flash of darkness. He opened his eyes to find himself, as well as Kairi, back in the graveyard. Sitting on a bench were Donald and Goofy, who leapt up when they saw them.

"Sora!" Goofy yelled.

"Kairi!" Donald quacked. "Where'd you go?"

Kairi put a hand on her head, still dizzy from the fight. "We… had a bit of an encounter with Madame Leota," she said.

Sora leaned down, still panting. "Good news is, I don't think she'll be a problem anymore."

Goofy gestured towards the Keyhole. "Well, she may be gone, but d'ya wanna seal the Keyhole?"

Sora looked to Kairi, who sat down next to a tombstone. "No thanks," she said. "I need to get my head together before I get sick."

Sora chuckled slightly, then stood straight and raised Bare Necessities. A magic beam burst from the blade and connected with the Keyhole, locking it. As Sora lowered his Keyblade, the Keyhole disappeared.

"So," Donald said, putting away his staff. "We just need to do two more things: search for the Black Cauldron and find something to open the next pathway with."

"Ugh," Sora muttered. "Well, I don't think the Black Cauldron's here, or Madame Leota would have used it to try and stop us. I think we can check that off. But I don't know what would open up the next pathway."

As she sat, Kairi felt a strange sensation inside her pocket. She looked down to see a faint glow from inside. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the wedding ring, which was glowing a bright white. Sora, Donald, and Goofy noticed the glow and looked.

"Well," Goofy said with a smile, "I think we found out."

"Way to go, Kairi!" Sora beamed.

Kairi blushed as she opened her hand. The ring floated up into the air. It was pulsing purple and red. Kairi stood up as shimmering light, resembling the shape of a crown, appeared at her feet. There was a gust of swirling blue and white energy, and soon Kairi found herself in an environment of red and gold skies with dark clouds. A beam emitted from the ring into the air, and a Keyhole seemingly appeared. Kairi was confused, but an instinctual feeling guided her to point Destiny's Embrace at the Keyhole. A beam emitted from her Keyblade and into the Keyhole. With a flash of white, Kairi found herself back in the graveyard again.

"Did I just seal a Keyhole?" she asked.

"Not really," Sora explained. "You opened the pathway to the next world. Good thing you found that ring."

Kairi shrugged as she put the ring back into her pocket. "Well, at least I know I can do that now."

Sora, Donald, and Goofy chuckled. Together, they all began to walk through the graveyard to a gate on the other side, where they saw the Gummi Ship parked in the distance.

As they walked, they were all startled by the return of a voice.

"Ah, there you are! And just in time."

Sora huffed. "What do you want?"

The Ghost Host chuckled sinisterly. "I applaud you for doing so much for our dear little haunted home. And all of you came through without being scared to death. I think that deserves a reward."

Sora jumped as a raven cawed loudly overhead. He looked up to see it sitting in a dead tree, its eyes red and holding something in its talons. It then took to flight, and dropped the item in the dirt in front of Sora before vanishing without a trace. Sora reached down and picked it up, then examined it. It was small, shiny silver brooch in the shape of a skull. It had white diamonds for eyes and was connected to a small chain. Though hesitant, Sora activated Bare Necessities and removed its Keychain, replacing it with the Ghost Host's gift. The new Keyblade appeared as if it were made of chiseled stone, not unlike the same material of the tombstones in the graveyard. Its hilt was a smooth marble, and the guard looked like bronze candle holders, each with small, melted white candles in them. The bit looked like an iron fence, but was arranged to resemble a spider's web. The Keyblade had changed into Midnight Spree.

As Sora was changing his Keyblade, Kairi felt a compulsion. She reached back into her pocket and pulled out the wedding ring. She glanced at Sora, then felt her attention being pulled behind her. As she turned, she saw a large tombstone depicting a weeping angel. On the plaque beneath the statue read the name "Emily". Slowly, Kairi bent down over the grave. In an urn on the dirt was a single red rose, the only live flower in the whole graveyard. Kairi slowly extended her hand and gently placed the ring down on the dirt. She felt a sadness as she did so, but stood up straight again and turned back to Sora.

"Oh. There's a little matter I forgot to mention," the Ghost Host mused.

"What?" Sora asked.

"Beware of the Hitchhiking Ghosts. They might just follow you home."

Sora scoffed, but in a more friendly manner this time. Even Kairi was not scared anymore.

"Farewell," the Ghost Host chuckled as they headed for the ship.

As Kairi was about to walk through the gate, she turned and looked back at the grave where she had set the ring. She was not sure if her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she thought she saw the image of a woman, dressed in a white bride's dress and veil, standing next to the grave. Kairi thought she could see a red glow inside her chest, pulsing like the beat of a heart. In the mists beside her was the grinning face of the Hatbox Ghost.

* * *

As they prepared for takeoff, Sora admired the new Keyblade. He looked out the cockpit window at the Haunted Mansion, again he thought he saw candlelight traveling across one of the upstairs windows. He noted the reflections of himself, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy in the window, though he thought he saw three other figures standing in the ship as well: a short man with a long beard, a tall, skeletal man, and a plump man with a top hat and a bag. Sora turned to look inside the ship, but saw no one. He sat puzzling for a moment, but shrugged it off and went back to piloting.


	14. Boogieing Bayou

The tall man muttered to himself, frustrated. He waved his hand, blowing the purple smoke away. Those Keyblade brats had messed up Madame Leota. They were more powerful than he had thought. In the faint light of the chamber, he saw his wispy shadow move on its own, shaking its head in confusion and annoyance.

"If those little brats are gonna be knockin' on our door soon," the man said, gently handling the talisman hanging around his neck, "we might need a little more… firepower." The talisman, a wooden pendant carved to resemble a demonic face, glowed red as he spoke.

* * *

The room was so dark that the man could not see his shadowy companion. He knew to tread lightly here, as well as be on his best behavior. Behind the stone table was the throne of skulls, and perched upon it was the Horned King. His robes ran down his form, weaving his presence with the color of dried blood. His skull-like face stared down at the man with vexed anticipation as his claws gripped the handles of his throne.

The man removed his tall top hat, revealing his messy, dark hair. He held the hat to his chest as he arced his back in a semi-bow.

"Master," he said in an affable, polite voice. "I know that I'm in hock to you pretty deep already, but it seems Madame Leota has gone and… broken on us… and I think I could use a little more firepower for when those brats arrive."

The Horned King's long fingernails dug into the skull he was clutching, scraping the bone and leaving visible gashes in the bone.

Before the Horned King even spoke, the man continued. "Now, I get it," he said smoothly, placing his hat back onto his head. "You wonder what's in it for you. What more could I possibly have to offer? Well…" The man opened his hand, releasing a flurry of thick, swirling purple smoke. As the man waved his hand, the magic smoke traveled from his palm and onto the round stone table, covering the top. The smoke glowed a golden glow and began to morph shape, and soon other colors appeared. The smoke swirled and shifted, until it resembled a landscape of swamp and forest, as well as a town on the water, with ornate buildings and green parks.

"Once I dispose of the Key Kids, I'll be runnin' my world. But the Heartless are all the company I need. As for all the people currently livin' there, well, you get all the souls you'll need to power the Black Cauldron for centuries. And hundreds of bodies, just waitin' to be reborn… just waiting to be yours."

The man waved his hand again, and his magic glowing display vanished, accompanied by the faint sounds of hundreds of small screams. The smoke and noise dissipated, and the man dusted off his hands with a confident, yet cautious smile towards the dark lord. "Have we got ourselves a deal?"

The Horned King lowered his head in frustration, but it was clear that the proposal was enticing. Without saying a word, the Horned King lifted his gnarled hand and waved it. A strange green light glowed from the center of the stone table, illuminating the dark room. The man's shadow appeared, a wide grin evident on its black face. Suddenly, it was joined by several other shadows: warped, twisted images. They appeared as elongated versions of the Heartless the man knew, only larger and cast against the wall. Their eyes glowed yellow as they surrounded the walls of the room.

The Horned King reclined back onto his throne. "The first world to face my wrath has been decided," he growled. "Do not fail me."

The man cackled as he looked around at his dark allies. "Now we're cookin'!" he cheered evilly.

* * *

"Next world comin' up!" Goofy informed his friends.

Sora saw it in the distance. It was a very green world, filled with vegetation of all kinds. The world could almost be spilt in two: one half, filled with lush swampland and dark green trees, dotted with docks and shacks; the other half, a bright, colorful city with buildings that looked similar to the Haunted Mansion, but much more well-kept.

"Where do we go?" Donald quacked.

Sora shrugged. "I'll set down by the edge of the swamp. That way we can do either direction." He flew the Gummi Ship towards the world.

* * *

It was twilight in the world as Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi disembarked. Sora landed on a small wooden dock that jutted out into the bayou. Even on the edge of the marshland, the trees were massive, and vines and moss clung from every surface they could. The water below was murky, but still and soothing. The distant sound of crickets and moths could be heard in the air.

Kairi took a deep breath in, then coughed and crinkled her nose. "It kind of stinks," she said.

Sora laughed and shrugged. "Well, it is a swamp, Kairi."

"It's kind of nice, all things considered," Goofy said, looking out into the foliage.

"So," Donald quacked, "where do we go to find the Keyhole?"

Sora scanned the swamp, looking for a landmark or item of interest that might give them an idea which way to go. The trees parted to reveal a bayou nearby, but there was little else. He turned and looked behind him, seeing the tops of buildings poking out from beyond the treeline.

"Well," he said, "there's swampland over there and what looks like a town over there."

"Maybe we can split up?" Donald suggested. "Sora and I can investigate the swamp, and Kairi and Goofy can check the town. That way, whichever pair finds the Keyhole or a clue towards it will have a Keyblade ready to take care of it."

Goofy nodded. "That's a good idea. And don't forget, we also need to look for the object that'll open the next pathway."

Both Sora and Kairi were hesitant to the idea, but neither really understood why. Kairi shrugged and turned to face Sora.

"So…" she said sweetly, "I guess we'll meet up with you later?"

Sora blushed as he smiled at her. "Yeah," he replied. "See you in a bit."  
Donald and Goofy grinned at each other before grabbing their respective partners' hands and pulling them in the direction they were headed. Both Sora and Kairi blushed as they followed their friends.

* * *

Sora and Donald walked on the dirt paths through the swamp, trying their best to stay out of the mud and marsh. Occasionally, Donald's webbed foot would splash into a pool of swamp water, making him grumble. Sora wiped his brow, looking ahead to see anything that resembled a Keyhole. In front of them, the dirt path was ending as the land dipped into the bayou, which was large and surrounded by trees. Sora stepped out onto the shore. The trees were fewer here, and the sun was low in the sky. The first hues of twilight were beginning to emerge.

"Well, we might have an issue," Sora said, putting his hands on his hips. "It doesn't look like there's much of a way around. We'll have to cross."

Donald stepped up to the waterline and peered ahead. He winced and looked at Sora with a raised eyebrow. "That water looks pretty murky," Donald said. "Kinda gross."

Sora shrugged. "We've swam through worse. Monstro's mouth was pretty gross too, remember?"

"Yeah, but-" Donald began, before a sound cut him off. It was a deep, low hissing, which ended in what sounded like a growl. Sora and Donald jumped back as three dark figures emerged from the cloudy water. Sora activated Midnight Spree as Donald pulled out his staff. The figures were Snaptrap Heartless: black, crocodile-like monsters easily as long as Sora was tall, with green and red spikes and scales running along their backs. Their eyes glowed a dark yellow, and they opened their massive mouths to reveal rows of sharp white teeth. Their long tails splashed the water as they clawed up onto land, which were tipped with a single large fin emblazoned with the Heartless emblem.

Donald quacked a mighty war cry as he cast a Blizzard spell at the Heartless, striking all three. The Snaptraps recoiled and hissed, but then pressed forward, snapping their jaws at the two. Sora and Donald jumped out of the way, and Sora stabbed down at one of their heads. The Keyblade's tip slammed against the Heartless' head and pinned it to the ground, but it did not pierce the scales. The Snaptrap roared and lunged, knocking Sora to the ground. The Heartless snapped its jaws and clawed at Sora, who rolled away in time for the claws to miss him. He jumped back to his feet, then jumped up onto the Heartless' back and began slashing at it. The monster tried to throw him off by writhing and snapping its tail at him, but Sora kept his balance and kept swinging until the Keyblade dug deeper and rippled up a portion of scales, sending the dark pieces flying.

The Snaptrap hissed and roared, then bucked violently. Sora attempted to keep his balance, but fell off. He landed in the dirt again, and the Snaptrap charged, gnashing its teeth. Sora quickly threw up his Keyblade and the Heartless bit down on it. It began thrashing, attempting to disarm or devour Sora. The Heartless' strength was enormous, and Sora struggled to keep the powerful jaws and sharp teeth away. Suddenly, a lightning bolt fell from above and onto the Snaptrap, striking it in the exposed spot on its back. The Heartless roared before falling and vanishing. Sora stood up to see Donald with his staff raised give him a feathery thumbs-up.

The other two Snaptraps split, one going after Sora and the other going after Donald. Donald hit the monster with his staff, but it clawed at him and sent him skidding back. Donald turned to put some distance between himself and the Heartless, but before he could run, he felt a terrible pain and pressure on his backside. Donald shrieked loudly in his quacking voice, bolting forward. The pain decreased as he ran, and he stopped to look. His posterior was missing a great deal of tail feathers, and his exposed behind was throbbing and red. The Snaptrap hissed, with several white feathers sticking out from its teeth.

Donald's brow lowered as his feathery fists tightened. He could almost feel steam rushing from his ears as his blood began to boil and his beak twisted into a tight frown.

"So," he growled, "you think you're tough, huh? Doggone, stubborn little… I'll show you!" Donald quacked a violent yell as he rushed in, swinging his staff. The Snaptrap opened its mouth to bite at him, but Donald rammed his staff down on the Heartless' head, slamming the creature's mouth shut as its head smashed to the ground. Before it could even recover, Donald was casting Fire, Blizzard, Thunder, and Gravity spells on it, bombarding it with elements and force. He then cast an Areo spell on himself, surrounding himself in an orb of sharp winds. He smacked the Heartless' face with his staff again, shattering a large portion of its scaly armor. Donald's winds immediately began cutting at the spot, and Donald cast a Fire spell. The ring of flames that surrounded him struck the spot, defeating the Heartless.

The last Snaptrap hissed as it approached Sora, ready to attack. Sora raised his Keyblade in front of him, waiting. The Heartless roared and lunged, jumping off of the ground and opening its jaws wide to bite at Sora's head.

Quickly, Sora flicked his Keyblade downwards. "Force!" he called. The Gravity spell yanked the monster back to the ground. Sora lowered Midnight Spree until the bit was almost touching the ground, then slid towards the Snaptrap. The Keyblade rammed into the side of the monster so hard that the whole Heartless flipped over, landing with a thud on its back. Sora raised his Keyblade again and cast a Thunder spell, with the lightning striking the Snaptrap's exposed underside. The Heartless roared and flailed, so Sora kept casting Thunder until his magic power was drained. With a final bolt, the Heartless was vanquished.

Sora exhaled heavily. He looked out at the bayou that the Heartless had come from. As he looked, he thought he saw something in the dirty water. He had to squint, but made out what looked like dozens of faint yellow glows in the murk. He sighed in frustration when he figured out what they were: Snaptrap eyes.

Sora shook his head. "Well, we can't swim across," he said. "The whole bayou is full of Heartless. We need to find another way across."

Donald scanned the shore. "I don't see a raft or log or anything."  
Sora huffed and crossed his arms, then looked back out at the water. As he looked, he thought he saw one of the yellow glows separate from the rest of them and begin working its way towards him. Then he noticed that the light was not a Heartless eye in the water, but a small glow flying above it. It was getting closer.

"What is that?" Donald asked.

"I'm not sure…" Sora began to respond.

Suddenly, a third voice interrupted them. "Whoo! Well lookie here!" The voice was loud, and had a very thick accent with a drawl. It came from the glow. As the glow approached, Sora and Donald could see what it was: a green firefly, with a friendly face full of crooked teeth and a large, bright thorax that glowed a golden light. It flew up to Sora and hovered next to his face.

"I never seen the likes of you 'round here before!" the firefly said in his heavy accent. "That was some good monster fightin', I tell you what!"

Sora smiled. "Thanks," he said.

The firefly backed up and flew around in the air in front of them. "'Bout time I introduce myself. My name is Raymond, but ever'body call me Ray."  
Sora nodded. "I'm Sora. And this is my friend Donald."

"Do you live around here?" Donald asked.

"Well of course!" Ray grinned. "Born and raised in da bayou. Where'd y'all come from?"

Sora hesitated, careful not to talk about other worlds with someone who was not aware of their existence, so he decided to settle on a vague answer. "Actually, we're from a place far away. We're here looking for something. Do you know of something called a Keyhole?"

Ray chuckled. "No clue here. But if there's anybody y'all would want to talk to 'bout such things, it'd be Mama Odie. She the voodoo queen of da bayou. She got magic and spells and all kinds of hoodoo."

Sora glanced at Donald. "Maybe she could help us," he said. Donald nodded.

Sora turned back to Ray. "Could you take us to her?"

Ray laughed again. "Shoot, I'll show you da way! I lead you through safe path through da bayou!" Ray's glow brightened so he was more visible. The sky was growing gradually darker, so his glow was even more noticeable. "Just follow da bouncin' butt!" With that, Ray turned and began flying down across the edge of the water towards the trees, keeping a pace fast enough to lead the way but not fast enough to lose his followers. Sora and Donald followed after the firefly as he flew through a mess of vines covering the trees. Sora activated Midnight Spree and hacked through them, revealing a path in the shady woods. He smiled as he and Donald followed Ray.

* * *

The sun was getting low as Kairi and Goofy walked into the town. The buildings were either white and ornate or colorful and quaint, and lush patches of green grass and moss dotted the landscape. The streets were a smooth cobblestone, and flags and banners hung from railings, fluttering in the breeze.

"This is a nice place," Kairi commented.

Goofy nodded. "So, where d'ya think the Keyhole is?"

Kairi scanned the environment. There were buildings of every color, adorned with signs and advertisements, but none seemed to stand out as being landmarks of special importance.

As she looked, she thought she heard a sound like a scream. She turned around to look behind her, she heard it again, but this time could make it out as a pair of screams. Behind her was a metal gate. Behind it were dark grey tombstones and mausoleums scattered on wet dirt, with a dead oak in the center. Kairi huffed when she saw it.

"Great," she said. "More graveyards."

Then, to her surprise, the sources of the screaming rounded a corner right in front of the gate. They were coming towards her.

"What?" Kairi asked, confused.

Goofy squinted. "It's a pair of little frogs!" he said.

The two frogs were hopping down the cobblestone street towards them. One was a darker shade than the other, and there was no doubt that they were the ones yelling.

"Help!" a female voice cried from the lighter frog.

"They're gaining on us!" a male voice called from the darker frog.

"Who?" Kairi asked. However, her question was answered when a group of Heartless rounded the corner. There were a pair of Acidic Orchestras, two Neoshadows, and a short, humanoid Heartless. It appeared to be made out of patchwork, consisting of dark blacks, reds, purples, and greens with sickly yellow stitching, with the Heartless emblem stitched crookedly to its chest. Its eyes appeared to be black buttons, and in its fists were oversized sewing pins with red heads. Under its button eyes was its mouth, which resembled a misshapen tear in the fabric, with strands of the yellow thread zigzagging across its smiling black maw. It was a Stitch Doll.

Kairi activated Destiny's Embrace, and Goofy pulled out his shield. "Over here!' he called to the frogs. He waved them over to a potted plant on the side of the road, and the two amphibians hopped in and hid in the leaves.

The Neoshadows were the first to attack, both ganging up on Kairi. They dropped to the ground and seemed to melt into black puddles, which darted across the road towards her. Kairi jumped back as the two Heartless sprung out of the ground, swiping at her with their claws. Kairi swiped her Keyblade low, hooking the bit around one of he Neoshadow's necks and pulling it into the other, their misshapen heads clunking together as she threw them down.

Both of the Acidic Orchestras flew towards Goofy, charging up balls of acid. Goofy angled himself, then tossed his shield at one of them. It struck the Heartless and ricocheted into the other one, cancelling both of their shield bounced back to the first target and then back to the second, hitting them both a few times before one shifted position to let the shield fly away, bounce off a building's railing, and back to Goofy's hand. One splashed acid at Goofy, but he blocked it and charged, ramming the Heartless and destroying it before whirling around, jumping into the air, and spiking the other Acidic Orchestra to the ground, defeating it as well.

The Neoshadows clawed at Kairi, but she managed to dodge. She angled her feet and quickly slid across the ground in a half-circle, whirling behind the Heartless and hitting them both in the back with one swing. As she readied another attack, she felt a sharp pain in her back The Stitch Doll rammed one of its weapons into her back, causing a piercing pain. Kairi yelped and spun around to face the enemy, gritting her teeth. The Stitch Doll Began rapidly swinging its arms, stabbing at Kairi with its sewing pins. Kairi blocked, but then heard the Neoshadows approaching behind her. As soon as the Stitich Doll lowered its pins, Kairi pointed her Keyblade down and spun in a circle, hitting back her foes and creating a whirl of air and energy that pushed them back further. One of the Neoshadows vanished as it collapsed to the ground.

Kairi raised Destiny's Embrace to prepare for another attack. The Stitch Doll leapt backwards, then suddenly spat a ball of dark purple energy out of its mouth. The ball did not travel to Kairi, but rather to the Neoshadow. As the dark energy made contact with the Heartless, the Neoshadow's yellow eyes turned purple, and it began to spasm and shake. Kairi backed up, and readied her Keyblade to block. Suddenly, the Neoshadow charged, with a speed and ferocity that it had not had before. Kairi grunted and strained as the Heartless clawed and kicked at her Keyblade, attempting to break her defenses. When she saw an opening, she rammed the Neoshadow in the head with her Keyblade, but the impact hurt her hands more than it seemed to hurt the Heartless. She had to take out the Stitch Doll, but it was too far away.

Goofy, having just defeated the Acidic Orchestras, turned to see Kairi in peril. He threw his shield at the Neoshadow as Kairi broke away from it. Just before the shield struck, Kairi cast a Thunder spell, not on the Heartless but on the shield. Charged with electricity, it struck the Neoshadow, just barely knocking it off-guard. However, upon impact, bolts of electricity arced off of it, with one striking the Stitch Doll right in its open mouth, destroying it. The purple in the Neoshadow's eyes faded, and Kairi slammed Destiny's Embrace down on top of its head, destroying it.

Goofy put away his shield and turned back to the potted plant. "Okay, you can come out now," he said. Two pairs of eyes peered out, and then the two frogs hopped out onto the street. The female one got closer to Goofy as Kairi deactivated her Keyblade and walked over.

"Thank you so much," she said in a sweet accent. "We were in some mighty trouble there."

The male frog hopped over and held up his hand. "Well, I'm sure I could have handled them," he said in a suave tone.

The female frog put her hand on her side. "Oh really?" she said in an annoyed tone.

"I'm glad we were able to help," Kairi interrupted, hoping to keep the two from arguing.

Fortunately, it seemed to work, as the female frog turned her attention away from her partner and looked up at Kairi. "We've yet to introduce ourselves," she said. "My name's Tiana."

The male frog extended his body, rising up on his hind legs shakily, but bowing. "And I am Prince Naveen, of Maldonia."

Kairi nodded. "I'm Kairi, and this is my friend Goofy."

The prince strode towards her, giving her a cheeky grin. "_Enchanté, mademoiselle_," he said.

"So what are you two frogs doin' out here?" Goofy asked.

"Actually," Tiana said, hopping over, "we're people. Prince Charming here got himself turned into a frog by a voodoo witch doctor, and he accidentally cursed me too."

Naveen shuddered. "Dr. Facilier. The Shadow Man. Nasty man."

"That's terrible!" Kairi said. "Is there any way we can help you?"

Tiana rubbed her chin. "We're lookin' for a woman named Mama Odie. She's a voodoo queen that we heard can change us back. We heard she lives in the bayou, but before we could get to the ferry docks, the Shadow Man found us and sent those creatures after us."

"Well, lucky you ran into us," Goofy said. "Fighting those monsters is our specialty. If you point us in the direction of the ferry, we can help take you to Mama Odie."

"Really?" Naveen said, his face a wide smile.

"You'd do that?" Tiana asked.

"Sure," Kairi said. "Maybe Mama Odie can help us with what we're looking for. We'll keep you safe."

"How?" Tiana asked. "We're just a pair of defenseless frogs waitin' to be appetizers."

Kairi pondered putting her hands on her hips. As she did so, she felt the Summon Gems in her dress pockets and got an idea. She moved Maui's stone to the same pocket as Toodles', then pulled on the fabric of her now-empty pocket to open it wide.

"Tiana, you can jump into my pocket. Naveen, you can ride with Goofy."

"Excellent idea, mademoiselle!" Naveen cheered. He hopped over to Goofy, who lowered his open palm. Naveen hopped up onto Goofy's arm and jumped into one of his jacket breast pockets. Tiana hopped into Kairi's pocket and snuggled down into it, her head and hands peering out.

"So," Goofy said after everyone was comfortable, "which way to the docks?"

"The way we came," Tiana said, pointing back down the road. Kairi nodded and began jogging in the direction Tiana had pointed her to. Goofy follwed with Naveen in his pocket. As Kairi ran, she looked down at her pocket. "Are you okay down there?" she asked.

Tiana nodded. "A little shaky, but quite comfortable," she said.

"Good," Kairi said. She paused for a moment, then peered back down at the frog. "So why did the Shadow Man turn you into frogs?"

"I'm not too sure," Tiana said. "He tricked Naveen before the two of us even met, and Naveen said that Facilier was sayin' something about the Light of the World."

Kairi's brow furrowed. "Sounds like Dr. Facilier might be our enemy too."

Kairi rounded a street corner, and saw ahead of her a large wooden dock with a bright white steamboat resting in the water. She smiled when she saw it. However, before she could cross the threshold from street to dock, a Sitich Doll and a pair of Acidic Orchestras appeared out of thin air in front of her. Kairi skidded to a halt, activating Destiny's Embrace. Goofy hurried beside her, pulling out his shield.

"Oh no!" Naveen worried, sinking into Goofy's pocket. "More monsters!"

"We'll handle this!" Kairi said. "Tiana, get down." Tiana obeyed and ducked down into the pocket.  
The Stitch Doll opened its mouth, and a mass of purple energy drifted out. It surrounded one of the Acidic Orchestras, which began to twitch and shake violently as its eyes turned dark purple. Suddenly, it charged and threw a blast of acid at Kairi, who yelped as she jumped back. The acid splashed onto the street, and a few drops hit her arm. She shook it, flinging the stinging liquid off. The Acidic Orchestra had charged and launched its acid attack much quicker than usual, no doubt because of the Stitch Doll's spell.

Goofy threw his shield, hitting the empowered Acidic Orchestra out of the air and onto the ground. The other Acidic Orchestra flew over and attempted to splash acid at him, but Naveen stuck his head out and opened his mouth. His long, wet frog tongue shot out, hitting the Heartless in the eye. The Acidic Orchestra staggered as Naveen recoiled his tongue, and Goofy took the opportunity to slam his shield down onto the Heartles, pinning it to the ground. He then jumped on top of his shield, smashing the Acidic Orchestra between the road and the shield.

The Stitch Doll lumbered over, swinging its pins violently as Kairi. Kairi blocked them with her Keyblade, then began her offensive. She struck the Heartless repeatedly in several spots, then swept its legs with her blade and sent it collapsing to the ground. As she raised her Keyblade to stab down, she was rammed from the side by the other Acidic Orchestra, sending her stumbling. She heard Tiana grunt from inside her pocket.

The Stitch Doll got back up, and the two Heartless approached her. The Acidic Orchestra launched another acid attack, and Kairi dropped and rolled towards her foes, dodging the projectile. She ducked under the Acidic Orchestra and charged the Stitch Doll, ramming it with her Keyblade and destroying it. The dark power that strengthened the Acidic Orchestra vanished, and Kairi hooked the Heartless with her Keyblade and slammed it to the ground stunning it. She stabbed down, destroying it.

Kairi peered down. "You okay, Tiana?" she asked.

Tiana peeked out. "Yep," she assured.

"Good, let's go!" Kairi said, turning to Goofy and Naveen and waving them along.

They ran down the dock towards the ferry, but then Kairi saw another obstacle in their path: a booth, with ropes blocking off the rest of the dock. The booth was a dark brown, with a ledge on the front and a window in the front. Kairi sighed and slowed to a stop in front of the booth. There was a tan sign, stating that it cost fifty Munny for a ticket.

"Shoot," Kairi said, crossing her arms.

Goofy inspected the sign. "Well, Tiana and Naveen are hidden, so we only need to buy two tickets; one for you and one for me."

"But that's the issue," Kairi huffed. "We don't have any Munny."

Tiana sighed, then glanced over at Naveen. He saw her looking at him and shrugged. "Don't look at me," he said. "I'm broke."

Goofy tapped his head with his pointer finger, trying to think of a solution. Kairi decided she should at least check her pockets. She did not bother to check the one Tiana was in, but she reached into her other pocket and felt around. She only felt the two Summon Gems. She figured they would not be much help.

Unless…

Kairi gripped one of the Summon Gems and pulled it out, checking to make sure it was the right one. It was a purple gem with a picture of a question mark. She smiled as she got an idea. Kairi took a deep breath, then pressed the gem to her chest. This was her first time summoning an ally with a Summon Gem, but she instinctively knew what to do. Her Heart beat fast from excitement.

"Light!" she called.

Suddenly, the area around her seemed to vanish, instead replacing everything with colorful and wacky patterns and designs, such as zigzags, polka dots, stripes, and spirals. She heard a trilling and looked up to see Toodles descending from the swirling sky towards her. She giggled as her friend spun around her, similarly to how it did when they had first met.

"Hiya, Toodles!" she said.

Toodles trilled with happiness and excitement as it flew in front of her. On its screen, it displayed four colorful boxes, displaying a Mega-Potion, a Mega-Ether, a bag of Munny, and a question mark. Kairi pointed at the bag. Toodles trilled and glowed with light, and suddenly Kairi felt something in her hand. She looked down to see a small red bag full of Munny.

"Thanks, Toodles!" she said. Her friend chimed and trilled, then flew away. The crazy colors vanished, and she was back on the dock with the Munny.

Kairi opened the bag and quickly counted its contents. "One hundred Munny," she said. "Perfect!" She extended her arm and dropped the bag on the booth's ledge. As if by magic, the bag disappeared, and two green tickets appeared in its place. Kairi grabbed them both and handed one to Goofy. As she turned her head to look back, she saw that the ropes had vanished as well. She smiled and hurried towards the ferry, careful not to jostle Tiana in her pocket. As she and Goofy approached the ferry, there was a loud honk, and steam erupted from the boat's chimneys.

"Hurry!" Goofy said, running up the ramp and onto the boat. Kairi followed, boarding the boat as it departed down the river.

* * *

It was dark by the time Sora, Donald, and Ray reached the other end of the bayou. The trees were thick around them, and the water was getting deeper and darker. There had only been a few small Heartless on the way, easy enough ones for Sora and Donald to easily dispose of. They now stood on a muddy spot of land, covered in weeds.

"How much longer?" Donald sighed.

"We almost there," Ray said. "Mama Odie's 'round here."

Sora hated to admit it, but he was getting impatient as well. Ray had been a fun and friendly companion, but he was worried that the firefly had taken them in the wrong direction.

As he pondered, he heard a splashing sound. He paused to listen for it again, but instead heard what sounded like foliage rustling and muddy footsteps. Carefully, he activated Midnight Spree. Donald signaled to Ray to dim his light, then pulled out his weapon and followed.

The two tiptoed as quietly as they could towards the noises, though the mud and water made their footsteps loud. Soon, it seemed as though the noises were right in front of Sora. He slowly reached out towards a patch of vines, readied his Keyblade, and yanked them back.

Something swung at him from the darkness, and Sora quickly raised his blade to block it. He looked down at the attacker's weapon to see it was Destiny's Embrace.

"Oh, Sora, it's you," Kairi said, stepping out of the foliage and lowering her Keyblade. Sora breathed a sigh of relief and deactivated his weapon. Goofy stepped out from behind her.

"Good to see you guys," Sora said.

"You scared us!' Donald said, stomping his flipper in the mud.

Goofy chuckled. "Gawrsh, sorry," he said.

Kairi giggled as well, then turned to Sora. "So, did you find anything?"

Sora nodded. "Kind of. Ray?" He waved the firefly over. The bug brightened his light and flew over.

"These are my friends Kairi and Goofy," Sora explained.

"Well hello, y'all!" Ray said. "My name is Raymond, but ever'body call me Ray."

"Ray?" a female voice said. Sora looked down to see a light green frog stick its head out of Kairi's pocket. Then, a dark green frog peered out of Goofy's pocket.

"Tiana? Naveen?" Ray asked. "Whoo-wee! I was wonderin' where you was!"

"Ray!" Naveen called, hopping out of Goofy's pocket and into the marsh. He hopped onto the muddy land. Tiana followed, jumping out of Kairi's pocket.

"Thank Evangeline youse is okay!" Ray said, flying down to the frogs and circling them.

Kairi giggled again. "Sora, Donald, these are our friends Tiana and Naveen."

Donald quacked inquisitively. "It looks like they already know Ray," he said.

"Ray was the one who told us to go see Mama Odie," Tiana explained. "But we got separated when those monsters attacked."

"Monsters?" Sora asked. He glanced up to Kairi. "Heartless?" he asked.

Kairi nodded somberly. "Yeah. It sounds like the Heartless are being led by a voodoo witch doctor named Dr. Facilier, or the Shadow Man. He turned Tiana and Naveen into frogs."

"Wait," Sora asked, confusedly staring down at the two amphibians by his foot, "you're people?"

Naveen nodded. "He tricked us…" Tiana cleared her throat and eyed him, and he corrected himself. "He tricked me, and turned me into a frog, and I accidentally turned Tiana into one. He said something about the Light of the World."

Sora rubbed his chin. "Sounds like he's bad news, and it sounds like he might know something about the Keyhole."

"So we're tryin' to find Mama Odie so she can change them back," Goofy said.

Donald pointed in the direction they were headed. "We're on our way to see Mama Odie too. We figured she might know something about the Keyhole."

"Well, it's a good thing we ran into each other then," Sora said, resting his arms behind his head.

Kairi was happy that she had found Sora and Donald again, as well as met Ray. However, there was a nagging darkness on her mind, as if there was someone watching her. She felt a presence and glanced right and left to see if there was anyone there, but she could not see anything but trees and vines. She glanced downwards at her feet. Her shoes were partially submerged in the shallow water. In the nighttime darkness, she thought she saw a dark form moving by her foot.

Suddenly, the dark form surrounded her foot, and she could feel a pressure reminiscent of a clawed grip. Before she even had the time to scream, it pulled painfully. Kairi fell as her leg was pulled out from under her, splashing into the muddy water and hitting her chin on a vine. All eyes turned to look at her, when she suddenly was pulled again into the water, dragged by an unseen force.

Sora yelped as he reactivated Midnight Spree. A flat shadow, which looked like an elongated Neoshadow, had grabbed Kairi and was trying to pull her into the deeper water. He jumped and slashed at the shadow, but his Keyblade just splashed in the water and Kairi continued to be dragged. He did not notice what appeared to be the elongated shadow of a Soldier Heartless appear on a tree trunk behind him. It wrapped its clawed hands around his throat and lifted him off the ground. Sora gagged as he grabbed at his neck, but his hand passed right through the shadowy figure. He swung his Keyblade with his free hand, but it just hit air.

Donald quacked with alarm as he rushed to help Kairi, and Goofy hollered and tried to help Sora. Goofy grabbed Sora's legs and tried to pull him back to the ground, but the shadow tightened its grip. Sora gasped and grunted as he was choked, desperately trying to get air.

The other shadow yanked Kairi into deeper waters, and before she knew it, she was submerged. She tried to breach, but black, two-dimensional hands on the surface of the water seemed to keep her down. She flailed and held her breath, activated her Keyblade, and tried swinging at the creature, but her blade just passed through it. Donald jumped into the water after her, casting a Fire spell and surrounding himself in magic flames, unaffected by the water. To both his and Kairi's surprise, the creature recoiled and backed away, allowing Kairi to surface and gasp for air. Donald lunged at the creature, which lunged at him. Before its claws made contact, Donald cast another Fire spell, and the creature vanished in a fizzle of light.

Goofy tried to get Sora down, but nothing was working. Sora's vision was beginning to blur, and he could hear his Heart beating quickly in his chest. He kicked and squirmed, but he could not free himself. However, even with his blurring vision, he saw what looked like the shadow of a Search Ghost approach behind Goofy, one that looked like an Invisible reach out towards Naveen and Tiana, and one that looked like a Darkball approach Kairi and Donald. He tried to warn them, but he just choked.

Suddenly, a projectile of light flew from the trees. It struck the shadow strangling Sora, which vanished upon contact. Sora felt air fill his lungs as he fell, gasping and coughing. Goofy caught him, and another light flew out and destroyed the shadow creeping behind him. The other two shadows recoiled in what looked like fear, before two more projectiles hit them and destroyed them as well. Naveen, Tiana, and Ray flinched when they realized how close one of the shadows was to them, and Kairi and Donald paddled out of the water.

Goofy helped Sora to his knees. Sora bent over, rubbing his neck and coughing. Kairi swam out of the water and ran over to him, sopping wet. She knelt down next to him and rubbed his back.

"Sora!" she cried worriedly. "Are you okay?"

Sora coughed and gasped again, but nodded. He inhaled sharply, finally feeling the pain subside. He continued to rub his neck, but sat up and looked in the direction the lights had come from.

From out of the mist came a short figure. As it approached, he heard a giggling.

"Not bad for a hundred ninety-seven year old blind lady!". The figure stepped into the moonlight. It was a short, elderly woman with dark skin and baggy wrinkles. She wore equally baggy white clothing and a white turban, and was adorned with massive gold jewelry. She had a pair of black glasses perched upon her nose, and held a fat wooden wand that glowed with light.

"Mama Odie?" Goofy asked.

The old woman nodded, shaking her wand. "That's right," she said. She blew on her wand, and he light dissipated. "Now. Which one of you naughty kiddies been messin' with the Shadow Man?"

Tiana and Ray glanced at each other, then looked back at Mama Odie and both pointed to Naveen. He smiled embarrassed, shrugging.

Mama Odie shook her aged head and walked a little closer. "And you," she said, pointing her wand at Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy, "I reckon you're here about the Keyhole."

Sora nodded as he stood up, finally feeling like himself again. "That's right," he said, rubbing his neck a few last times before dropping his hand and deactivating his weapon. "We were hoping you could help us."

"Lotsa people needin' help these days," she said to herself before turning around and walking back in the direction she came. "Follow me, y'all."

Sora and Kairi glanced at each other, but obeyed. Donald and Goofy followed behind, scooping up Tiana and Naveen respectively in their hands and carrying them. Ray flew up next to Sora and Kairi, and they all followed Mama Odie.

* * *

Mama Odie's abode was unique to say the least. It was a wooden boat, overgrown with foliage and vines and teeing with flowers and branches. It was nestled comfortably in a tree, held up by the sturdy branches. The heroes followed the old woman up the wooden and stone stairs and into the home. It was full of various items, such as stools, a torn but comfortable-looking red chair, a bathtub of bubbling red liquid, and colorful bottles hanging from string from the branches above.  
"Juju!" Mama Odie called. There was a hiss, and a small green snake slithered from a hidden area and across the floor, slithering underneath a chair and between Kairi's legs as it coiled near the old woman. Kairi jumped as Mama Odie pet the serpent.

"What's the matter?" she chuckled. "Don't like snakes?"

Kairi tried to laugh it off. "We had… kind of a bad experience with one a little bit ago," she replied, thinking back with frustration to their encounter with Kaa.

Tiana hopped forward, following Mama Odie as she walked over to the bathtub. "We've been looking so long for you, Mama Odie," she said. "You can't imagine what we've been through."

"We've been looking for you too, ma'am," Sora said. "You said you knew about the Keyhole?"

"One person at a time, now!" Mama Odie complained, dipping her wand into the liquid. She stirred and sniffed. "This here is my specialty gumbo. Tastes so good, you'd think it was magic!" She cleared her throat. "Well, it just so happens that your problems are tied into each other."

"Really?" Naveen asked, hopping next to Tiana.

"That's great!" Kairi said. "What do we have to do?"

"It won't be easy," Mama Odie said. "Y'all are lookin' for the Keyhole to stop the Heartless from comin' though. But that darn Shadow Man has hidden it, usin' some nasty voodoo."

"Do you know where it is?" Kairi asked.

"Hush, now, child, and let me finish!" Mama Odie said. "Even if I tell you where it is, it won't appear for ya. That's because the Shadow Man has messed with the Light of the World. With the Light hindered, the Darkness hides all."

"The Light of the World?" Tiana questioned.

"The Shadow Man… he was talking about that when he transformed me," Naveen pondered.

"Of course!" Mama Odie exclaimed, pulling her wand out of the gumbo and walking over to her chair. She sat down as Juju pushed a footstool under her wrinkled feet. "That's because y'all are the Light of the World!"

There was a pause of confusion, and Tiana gestured towards her and Naveen. "Us?" she puzzled.

"Yes sir," Mama Odie explained. "You two may not know it of each other yet, but your Hearts are so pure and full of Light that they have kept the Darkness back 'til now. But now that the Darkness has grown stronger, the Shadow Man has got some new powers, powers no one should have. And he used that power to turn y'all into frogs, disheartening you and dimming the Light so that the Heartless could start comin' through."

"We have a pretty good idea where the Shadow Man got those powers," Donald huffed, tapping his foot.

"So, how do we restore the Light?" Goofy asked.

Mama Odie motioned towards Naveen and Tiana. "Y'all have to find what you need. When you've found your purpose, when you've found that which brings out the Light in your Heart, the Light of the World will be bright enough to hold the Darkness back again."

"So, we need to become human again?" Tiana asked.

"No!" Mama Odie yelled, sitting up. "You _want_ to be human. But you're blind to what you _need_."

"What we want, what we need, it is all the same thing, yes?" Naveen asked.

"It's the same thing?!" Mama Odie said. "No! You gotta dig a little deeper to find out who you are, and what you need. I want y'all to go with these lovely people to the place where the Keyhole is, and spend some time together, talk amongst yourselves. Find out what you need, and Light will fill the world once more."

Tiana sighed, but nodded. "Okay, Mama Odie," she said.

"We'll do our best," Naveen said. He and Tiana looked at each other and smiled.

"We'll figure it out, right?" he asked.

Tiana nodded. "If we put our heads together, we'll figure it out."

"Good," Mama Odie chuckled. She jumped up from her chair and walked back over to the bathtub filled with gumbo. "Now," she said, "the rest of y'all, come here."

Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy and Ray hurried over to the bathtub. Mama Odie stirred the gumbo again, and suddenly an image appeared in the liquid. It was faint at first, but then it started to glow. It showed a glimpse of a street, but in the center was an iron gate with a cemetery behind it.

"This is where the Keyhole is," Mama Odie explained.

Kairi leaned in closer and squinted. "Hey," she said. "Goofy and I were right near that place when we met Tiana and Naveen. We were that close to it?"

Mama Odie nodded. "Yep. Keyhole's in that place, hidden by Darkness. And I guarantee that the Shadow Man and the Heartless are guardin' it. They're probably waitin' for you."

"Then we need to go there and rough them up," Sora said, activating Midnight Spree.

"You watch yourself," Mama Odie warned. "You listen to your mama now. Don't underestimate the Shadow Man. He's got voodoo, he's got hoodoo, and he's got Dark tricks he ain't even tried yet."

Sora nodded. "Thank you, Mama Odie," he said. "We'll seal the Keyhole. We promise."

* * *

As they all readied to leave Mama Odie's house, Mama Odie pulled Sora aside.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Just some heads up," Mama Odie said. "I know your power. I know your strength. I know what drives you. You think you know what drives you, and you're almost there."

Sora raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Mama Odie shrugged. "Just know this: y'all need to dig a little deeper too. You've found what you need, but y'all ain't going for it yet."

"Huh?" Sora questioned. "Well, what is it?"

Mama Odie chuckled. "It's closer than you might think," she said. Then she called out, "Little lady? Might I have a word?"

Kairi turned around and walked towards them as Sora turned to prepare to leave. Sora and Kairi passed each other, smiling at each other. A strange thought entered Sora's mind as he thought about what Mama Odie had said.

Kairi watched Sora pass and hurry down to Donald and Goofy, and she approached Mama Odie. "Yes, ma'am?" she asked.

"You're a tough one," Mama Odie said. "But you gotta dig a little deeper too. Find out what you need."

Kairi shrugged. "Well, I need to master my abilities, so I can protect the ones I care about…"

"That's almost there," Mama Odie interrupted. "But becoming a Master is what y'all _want_. Dig just a little bit deeper, and you'll find what you _need_. And trust me, y'all don't have far to go."

Kairi smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Mama Odie," she said. "For everything."

Mama Odie waved. "Y'all take care now, y'hear?"

Kairi waved as she hurried to meet up with everyone else. All of them waved goodbye to Mama Odie as they set off back into the bayou.

* * *

It was still dark outside, but it was clear that the dawn was swiftly approaching. There seemed to be a light in the darkness, emphasized by the twinkling stars in the sky. Naveen and Tiana had decided to hop through the bayou instead of ride in someone's pockets, and were quite enjoying the brisk night air. Occasionally, a small Heartless would appear and Kairi or Sora would swat it away, but they had yet to see any of the dangerous shadowy Heartless that they had encountered before. Sora and Kairi walked side-by-side, talking about their mission.

Then, everyone heard a gasp and a sigh. Ray flew higher and pointed. "There she is," he said in an enchanted voice. "The sweetest firefly in all creation. Ma belle Evangeline,"

Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Tiana, and Naveen all stopped and glanced up to see a star, glowing brighter than the others. It seemed to pulse with magic as Ray danced in its light.

Donald quacked. "That's no firefly," he started. That's-"

Goofy pinched his beak closed, cutting him off. He put his finger to his lips and shushed his friend.

Ray swayed back and forth in the starlight. As he did, he began to sing.

_"Look how she lights up the sky_  
_Ma belle Evangeline_  
_So far above me, yet I_  
_Know her heart belongs to only me"_

As he sang, Naveen gestured to Tiana. "May I have a dance," he said.

Tiana laughed, but then realized he was serious. "Oh, no," she said. "I've never danced."

Naveen just chuckled and took her hand in his. "I'll show you," he said. He raised them both up onto their legs, and began to sway rhythmically with Tiana. She wobbled at first, but he kept the pace slow to keep her comfortable. She got the hang of it very quickly, and was soon dancing to Ray's singing.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy decided to take a rest. Donald reclined against a tree, and Goofy sat down on a spit of land jutting out into the water. Sora and Kairi sat down on a large log. As Donald and Goofy watched Naveen and Tiana dance, Sora and Kairi looked up at the star. It truly was beautiful. It was easy to see why Ray was so infatuated with it.

Sora and Kairi both leaned back, enjoying the break from the action. Kairi rested her hands on the log, breathing the night air in deeply. Sora stretched his arms, then set them down, placing his hand right onto Kairi's. Both looked at each other and blushed, pulling their hands away, with Sora setting his back on the log and Kairi folding them on her lap. Kairi glanced back up at the sky, but Sora glanced over back to Kairi. Her eyes twinkled in the starlight.

_"You're my queen of the night,_  
_So still, so bright._  
_That someone as beautiful as she_  
_Could love someone like me"_

Sora sighed, happy and content. There were dangers in every world, but he was glad he was fighting alongside Kairi. She had been his friend for so long, and he was thankful every day that they had been able to find each other again.

Tiana and Naveen finished their dance as Ray finished his song. Kairi kept her eyes on the stars, and Sora kept his eyes on Kairi.

"Well," Donald suddenly quacked, snapping Tiana, Naveen, Sora, and Kairi back to reality, "that was really nice. Thank you, Ray. But we should go before the Shadow Man can do any more damage."

Sora cleared his throat. "Yes, good idea," he said. He and Kairi smiled at each other before standing up and leading the way back to the town.

* * *

It was daybreak when the group reached the down. Half of the sky had the first rays of sunrise, and the other half was still darkened night. They walked through the streets until they saw the cemetery gate in front of them. Though sunlight was beginning to glow across the buildings, the cemetery appeared to still be encompassed by unchanging night. The shadows on the twisted tree and stone mausoleums were black and long, as if the sunlight was not able to breach past the gate.

As they approached, a pair of Snaptraps and a Stitch Doll suddenly materialized in front of them. The Stitch Doll had what looked like massive sewing needles in its grips, and it immediately began opening its twisted mouth.

As Sora and Kairi activated their respective Keyblades, Kairi called out to Sora and Donald. "That one there!" She gestured towards the Stitch Doll. "It can power up the others! Try to take it down quick!"

"The other two have really tough scales," Sora replied. "Try to hit their undersides or use magic." He then lunged at the Stitch Doll, slamming Midnight Spree onto its head. The Heartless' mouth was forced shut, and Sora took the opportunity to strike the monster right in its face, sending it flying backwards.

Goofy pulled out his shield, and waved to Naveen, Tiana, and Ray. "Go hide!" he said. "And don't come out until it's safe!" They agreed, and hurried to find cover.

One of the Snaptraps lunged at Kairi, snapping its massive jaws at her. Kairi held up her Keyblade, and the Heartless bit down on it instead. It began to pull, and Kairi had to plant her feet to hold her ground. She groaned and winced as she tried to pull away, but her feet were beginning to skid. Suddenly, Goofy rammed the Snaptrap, knocking it onto its side and forcing it to release Destiny's Embrace. It hissed and tried to get back up, but Kairi swung her blade down and struck its underside, knocking it onto its back. As the Heartless flailed, both Kairi and Goofy dropped their weapons down, defeating it.

Donald waited for the other Snaptrap to jump at him, then used a Gravity spell to send it crashing back down. He ran up to it and began rapidly striking a patch of scales, wearing it down until he was able to knock some off. As he readied to cast a Fire spell, the Snaptrap whipped its tail, striking Donald and sending him skidding back. The Heartless charged him, snapping its teeth. Donald quickly cast a Thunder spell on the creature's eyes, disorienting it so he could leap out of the way. As the Heartless tried to snap at him, Donald dodged and rammed his staff onto the exposed patch. The weapon sunk deep, and the Snaptrap vanished in a flurry of black smoke.

The Stitch Doll got back up, readying its weapons. Sora jumped at it, kicking it back down to the ground and landing on top of it. He pinned it down with his foot and began rapidly striking its head. The Heartless rammed its needles into Sora's foot, causing him to yelp in pain and jump back. The Stitch Doll got up and swung its weapons at Sora, but he blocked them and retaliated with a barrage of blows, destroying the Heartless.

Suddenly, three shadows emerged from the cemetery, the same ones that had attacked them in the bayou. One resembled a Shadow Heartless, one looked like a Large Body, and the third looked like a Stitch Doll. They slunk across the street, coming towards them.

"I've got it!" Donald quacked. He raised his staff and cast a new spell: a Light spell. A beam of magic light shone from his staff and hit the one resembling a Large Body, destroying it. The one resembling a Stitch Doll jerked away and into the shadows of the buildings, and the Shadow one lunged at Kairi.

Sora quickly pointed Midnight Spree at the shadow and used the same beam he used to seal Keyholes. The laser struck the creature, destroying it.

Suddenly, there was a yell from behind them. Everyone turned to see the last shadow grabbing Naveen and Tiana and Ray flew towards it. He shone his light, and the shadow recoil, dropping Tiana, but bolting back towards the cemetery with Naveen in its grip. He screamed as the creature dragged him.

"Naveen!" Tiana called, chasing after him.

"Stop it!" Donald quacked. Sora shot another beam, but the shadow dodged it and dragged Naveen screaming past the gates and into the dark cemetery.

"We have to save him!" Kairi called. She ran over and scooped up Tiana, and ran towards the gate. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Ray followed her into the darkness.

There was a cloud of mist covering the graveyard, making the tombstones and mausoleums even scarier. It was as if they had been transported back to the Haunted Mansion. The shadow dragged Naveen deeper, as his allies gave chase. Just before Kairi reached him, several more shadows emerged in her path, all resembling the shadows of Heartless. She was forced to skid to a stop. However, Tiana jumped from her hand and through the enemies, hopping quickly after Naveen.

"No, Tiana, don't!" Kairi called as Tiana hopped out of view. Sora and the others caught up.

"Naveen and Tiana are in trouble!" Kairi cried. "But these things are stopping us!"

Ray buzzed forward, lighting himself up. "Sora!" he called. "You, Donald, and Goofy go on ahead and save Tiana and Naveen! Kairi and I will stay here an' hold these rascals off! Go! Hurry!"

Sora nodded, and he and Donald destroyed two shadows with their magic. They ran through the gap with Goofy in tow, and chased after Tiana and Naveen.

"Be safe, Sora!" Kairi called.

"You too!" Sora called back as he charged into the mist.

Kairi readied Destiny's Embrace as the shadows surrounded her and Ray. Ray put on his meanest expression as he faced the shadows.

"Don't make me light my butt!" he warned. The shadows closed in, and he began destroying each one that came his way with his light. Kairi shot her beam at each one, pacing herself in order to keep up with the magic's charge. As the number of shadows began to dissipate, A Neoshadow and a pair of Stitch Dolls emerged from the mist. Kairi wasted no time stabbing one of the Stitch Dolls right in the mouth. It recoiled, and Kairi slammed her Keyblade into the side of its head. The Stitch Doll slammed into a mausoleum, vanishing.

The other Stitch Doll opened its mouth, then spat purple anergy at the Neoshadow. It stuck, and the Neoshadow's eyes turned purple as it shook and spasmed. Ray charged in with all his might, hitting the Stitch Doll in its button eye and making it stumble back. Kairi charged the Stitch Doll and rammed it. It swung its needles at her, and she blocked.

Suddenly, another shadow resembling a Gargoyle Knight crept up behind Kairi. Ray charged, blasting it with his light. He laughed as it vanished.

"Who's next?" he called.

Suddenly, the Neoshadow leapt towards him and clapped its clawed hands together around Ray. He grunted loudly from the impact, then fell to the ground. His light flickered as he moaned in pain. The Neoshadow raised its foot, then brought it down.

Kairi threw off the Stitch Doll, then swung and destroyed it. She turned and immediately attacked the Neoshadow, beating it until it was destroyed. He huffed, out of breath, then looked around. "Ray?" she asked, scanning the mist. She looked down, and immediately cupped her hands over her mouth as she gasped. "Ray?" she squeaked.

* * *

Tiana and Naveen got further and Further as the shadow continued to drag the latter away. Donald quacked and cast a Light spell forward, cutting its way through the mist and striking the shadow. It fizzled away and dropped him, but Heartless began to emerge. Sora, Donald, and Goofy caught up, then motioned for Tiana and Naveen to flee. They did so, ducking behind a tombstone as their friends rushed into battle.

"Naveen!" Tiana said. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "You… came after me," he replied.

"Of course," Tiana said. She sighed. "Truth is, Naveen, my dream wouldn't be complete… without you in it."

Naveen smiled. "What are you saying, Tiana?"

* * *

Sora struck down the last Heartless, then looked for more. The mist was beginning to clear, and he saw a figure approaching. It was not a Heartless, but Sora felt a dark feeling as it approached. As it stepped out of the mist, Sora identified it as a tall, thin man with dark skin and black hair and a thin mustache. He wore a dark purple tailcoat, black pants, and a tall top hat with a purple feather and a white skull and crossbones on it. He held a cane with a purple globe on top, and wore a wooden pendant carved to resemble a demonic face around his neck. He grinned a toothy grin as he looked at them.

"Gentlemen, _enchanté_," he said in a suave, but evil voice. He removed his hat to reveal a mess of tangled, dark hair before placing it back on his head. "A tip of the hat from Dr. Facilier. How y'all doing?"

Sora scoffed. "So you're the Shadow Man," he said. "What do you want with this world?"

Facilier laughed. "Let's just say I'm tired of livin' on the margins. The Heartless are much nicer company."

"Is that why you're working with the Horned King?" Donald quacked.

"Oh, y'all know about that?" the Shadow Man said, still grinning. "The Master gave me power I could never have dreamed of. And all I need to do to pay him back is a few small favors. One of which is disposin' of you."

"Where's the Black Cauldron?" Goofy asked, ignoring the threat.

Dr. Facilier laughed. "Forget trying to find it," he said. "The Master is gonna find it first, and then…" He chuckled and caressed his pendant. "All the magic I got in here will be the least of your worries."

"You're not going to defeat us!" Sora yelled, readying Midnight Spree. "You have no power!"

The Shadow Man's smile dropped and he pointed his cane at Sora. "Don't you disrespect me, little boy!" he yelled. "Don't you derogate or deride!" He waved his hand, and purple smoke flowed from his palm. The smoke mixed in with the mist and soon enveloped everything in Sora's view. As the smoke cleared, Sora found himself, Donald, Goofy, and Facilier in a purple-tinted open space, with colorful shapes and figures darting around the perimeter. More of the shadows appeared behind Facilier, including one that appeared to be his actual shadow, grinning evilly. Lime green smoke bellowed from an unknown source as the Shadow Man smiled again.

"You're in my world now, not your world. And I've got friends on the other side!" As he finished speaking, the shadows charged at Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

"Let's light them up!" Sora called. He blasted his beam at the approaching foes, taking out one immediately. Donald cast his Light spell at another, destroying it. Facilier scowled and tapped his cane on the ground. Two Stitch Dolls rose from the fog and began shambling towards the trio. Goofy readied his shield and threw it at the Heartless. The weapon hit one and bounced into the other before returning to Goofy, knocking both monsters to the ground.

Sora readied his Keyblade to shoot another beam, but felt something tug at his weapon. He looked to see Facilier's Shadow pulling his Keyblade away and holding it. Donald quacked and cast a Light spell, and the shadow recoiled and released the blade. A shadow creature resembling a Soldier Heartless attacked Sora, pulling him to the ground. Sora jumped back up and saw the shadows closing in. He and Donald glanced at each other, then signaled to Goofy. The three of them touched their weapons together, and combined their magic to create a massive ball of light. Facilier's Shadow ducked behind the Shadow Man as Sora, Donald, and Goofy finished their Trinity Limit, causing the orb of light to erupt and destroy all the shadows and Heartless.

The Shadow Man growled as he slammed his cane down, calling forth another Stitch Doll as well as a pair of Acidic Orchestras. As the Heartless approached, Donald whispered to Sora.

"This isn't good," he said.

"Why?" Sora asked. "It's just some more Heartless."

"Not that," Donald said. He motioned towards Facilier. "His pendant. It's where he's getting all of his power from."

Sora nodded. "Then we just need to destroy it," he said.

"That's the issue," Donald said. "We have to destroy it to stop him, but that's the object we need to open the next pathway."

Sora paused, then groaned. "You're right," he said. "This isn't good."

One of the Acidic Orchestras launched a ball of acid, and all three of the heroes dove out of the way to avoid being hit.

"We need to get that pendent off of him," Donald said. "Then Goofy and I need to keep him and the Heartless busy while Sora opens the next pathway. Then we need to destroy the pendent."

"Go!" Sora said, charging at the Heartless. He jumped and attacked one of the Acidic Orchestras, hitting it to the ground and stabbing it. The Stitch Doll spat its dark energy at the other one, and it shook violently before rushing towards Goofy at blinding speed. Donald attacked the Stitch Doll, but missed his swing. The Heartless jabbed Donald repeatedly with its pins before throwing him back. As Goofy engaged the empowered Acidic Orchestra, it suddenly splashed acid at him. The green liquid hit him, and Goofy yelped and hollered as he flailed and shook, trying to shake the acid off.

Sora defeated his Heartless, then rushed at the Shadow Man. Facilier's Shadow reached out to grab Sora, but Sora dodged the shadow's grip and closed the distance between him and the witch doctor. Facilier growled and swung his cane, and Sora blocked. Sora pushed the cane away and swung at Facilier, but the man vanished in a puff of purple smoke. As Sora looked around, He felt a blunt object strike the back of his head. He stumbled forward, then turned to see Dr. Facilier laughing behind him with his cane in had. The Shadow Man reached up and then swiped his hand over his face. The skull and crossbones on his hat vanished, and he suddenly had white face paint resembling a skull covering his dark, grinning face. He chuckled as he tossed his cane to the side, reached into his coat, then pulled out a small object.

Sora saw that it was a small, crudely stitched doll with button eyes and hair made out of string. It looked just like him. Facilier pulled out a needle and jammed it into the doll's side.

Sora screamed in pain as it felt like a blade was thrust through his ribcage. He gripped the area with his free hand and checked for blood, but did not see any. Facilier laughed and pulled the pin out. Sora felt the pressure and tension lessen, but the pain remained. The Shadow Man then stabbed the needle into the doll's leg. Sora felt the sharp pain again, and was forced to fall to his knees as he cried out in agony. As Dr. Facilier pulled the pin out again, his shadowy minion grabbed Sora's arms and held them. Facilier laughed as he stabbed the doll in the gut.

Donald rammed his staff into the Stitch Doll's head, destroying it. He looked and saw the Acidic Orchestra drained of its unnatural power, and Goofy spiked it to the ground and smashed it. Goofy wiped off the last bit of stinging acid, then then ran to help Sora.

"Oh no!" Goofy yelled as he saw Sora, restrained and crying out in suffering. Donald's magic energy had not yet replenished from their Trinity Limit, so he could not cast a Light spell at the shadow. Instead, both Donald and Goofy had the same idea: tackle Facilier to the ground. Just as the mad doctor was about to run the pin through Sora's Heart, he was suddenly and painfully slammed to the ground, dropping the doll and the pin. The Shadow released Sora and charged at Donald and Goofy, freeing Sora, who took a moment to breathe and let the pain subside. He looked up to see Facilier groaning and turning onto his back, rubbing his head. Despite his pain, Sora knew that this was his one chance. He stood up, ignoring the pain in his body, and ran at Facilier. As he approached, he extended his hand and grabbed the pendent, yanking it off of the doctor's neck.

Facilier gasped with concern as the string broke and Sora pulled the talisman away from him. "No!" he yelled. "Careful with that!"

The shadow turned its attention away from Donald and Goofy and saw Sora running away with the talisman, and changed course to chase after hm. However, Donald and Goofy jumped in the way. Donald pointed his staff at the shadow as if he were casting a Light spell, despite still being out of magic energy. The shadow fell for the bluff and temporarily retreated, before realizing the ruse and charging in.

As Sora ran with the pendent, he saw it start to glow. This was his one chance. He opened his hand and let the talisman float up into the air. Sora knew what to do, as he had done it many times before. The swirling energy and changing environment led to a beam coming off of the talisman, revealing a Keyhole. Sora pointed Midnight Spree at it, and a beam shot into it. There was a flash of white, and suddenly he was back in the graveyard. The purple and green voodoo realm that they had been fighting in had vanished, and Donald and Goofy were being knocked aside by the shadow. Both it and Facilier were rushing towards Sora as fast as they could.

As the talisman floated back down, Sora did not open his palm to catch it, but instead raised his Keyblade and brought it down on the pendent. The relic smashed into dozens of pieces, accompanied by bright flashes of green and purple. Sora saw the Shadow Man approached and jumped away, but was surprised when Facilier did not attack him, but rather fall to his knees and claw at the pieces.

"No!" he yelled. "No!" He began scooping the pieces into his hands. "How am I ever gonna pay back my debt?!" He glanced over his shoulder to see multiple shadow creatures, as well as Stitch Doll, Shadow, and Snaptrap Heartless emerge from the tombstones. They were headed right for him.

"No!" he yelled. He quickly stood up as his shadow flew alongside him. He conjured up purple smoke in his hand, then threw it down. There was a magical pulse of energy, and the Shadow Man man was engulfed in smoke. As is dissipated, Sora saw that he had vanished; run away like the coward he was.

As the smoke cleared, the shadows and Heartless did too. It was as if the Darkness was lifted from the place.

Sora took a knee and gripped his ribcage. He was still sore from the voodoo torture. Donald and Goofy ran to his aid. Donald's magic replenished, and he cast a Cure spell on Sora. Sora felt the pain substantially decrease, and was able to stand up again.

"Well, I don't think the Black Cauldron's here," Sora said. "Let's just find the Keyhole and move on."

As he finished speaking, Tiana and Naveen hopped out from the shadows, holding hands.

"Hey," Goofy said. "Good thing you two are alright."

"Better than that," Naveen said, looking passionately at Tiana. "We came to a realization about each other."

Tiana nodded. "We don't care if we're frogs. As long as we're together."

Naveen and Tiana leaned into each other, their love now evident for all to see.

Sora smiled as he watched. Suddenly, he saw a glow. On the ground where they were standing, there was an outline of a Keyhole.

"The Keyhole!" Donald quacked. "But the Light of the World…"

Goofy chuckled. "I think both Tiana and Naveen have dug a little deeper and found out what they need," he said. "Now the Lights of the World shines through."

Sora pointed his Keyblade at the Keyhole and shot a beam into it. The Keyhole sealed, then vanished with a flurry of light.

As he finished, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned to see Kairi walking slowly towards him, her hands cupped in front of her and a grieving expression on her face.

"Kairi!" Sora said, jogging over to her. "What's wrong?"

Kairi sniffled, holding back tears. "The Heartless…" She trailed off. Instead, she opened her hands to reveal Ray, badly injured. His body was bent and bruised, and his light flickered weakly. Sora gasped as Kairi knelt down and set Ray down on the stone. Donald, Goofy, Tiana, and Naveen hurried over, all shocked and saddened by what they saw.

Ray breathed slowly, his eyes shut tight. He slowly opened them and looked up at his friends and allies. He smiled weakly. "Did y'all find it? What y'all needed?" he wheezed.

Tiana and Naveen nodded. "We're staying frogs, Ray," Tiana said, taking Naveen's hand.

"And we're staying together," Naveen added.

"And we sealed the Keyhole," Sora said, choking slightly. "No more monsters will hurt your friends anymore."

Ray smiled and laughed. "Oh, I like that very much," he said. "Evangeline… like that too."

He looked up at his beloved star, then closed his eyes as his light went out. Sora and Kairi wiped tears from their eyes.

* * *

Ray's body was sent floating down the bayou on a leaf, returned to his home. Tiana, Naveen, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi were all present to say their goodbyes as they laid their friend to rest. As the leaf floated out of view, Kairi wiped tears from her eyes as Tiana approached Sora. "We made this for you," she said sadly. "I hope it helps you remember us." She handed Sora a trinket: a small wooden pendent in the shape of a star, attached to a braid of vines and stems with flowers on it. Sora smiled and thanked her. He activated Midnight Spree and replaced its Keychain with the gift, transforming it into Flowering Friends: a Keyblade that appeared to be made out of dark wood and wrapped in vines, various colored flowers, leaves, and twigs. Its bit resembled a lily pad, and its hilt was carved with voodoo symbols. There was a glow, like a firefly's, emanating from the leaf decorations above the hilt.

As Sora stood up and looked at the sky, he smiled and pointed. "Looks like this world will be filled with even more Light than before," he said. Everyone looked up and smiled when they saw a second star right next to Evangeline, glowing just as bright.


End file.
